Stealth
by Wayne7793
Summary: The story of a 10-year-old forced to take the role of a superhero, after his parents were murdered. This story includes his origins and first set of adventures. This is an original idea by me.
1. Chapter 1

STEALTH

**STEALTH**

**PROLOGUE**

A man quietly walked through the halls of the government building. He had come to visit here in Warsaw, Poland, for a direct purpose. The man stopped in front of a typical looking door with a glass sign, "Agency for Agricultural Reconstruction and Modernization". He looked at the sign quizzically. He hoped he had arrived at the right department, since they had changed many of the names and what they did back in 2017. The man turned the doorknob and entered the room beyond. He went up to the clerk at the main desk and inquired about a request for the proper forms for beginning a new township in southern Poland. The clerk looked through his computer files and printed out the proper stack of forms. The man smiled, and began filling out the forms. He was also referred to the Ministry of Environment for additional rules and forms.

Later, the man left the government building with several permits in his hand, freshly printed out and laminated. He now had the permission to convert some old farmland he had purchased into a new city, which he named "Rosulet". It was a quaint name, something of a throwback to the Middle Ages, but a romantic one. Rosulet was a name that would stand for peace and tranquility for all who lived there. The man hailed a cab and left Warsaw, heading south.

Hours later, he was back at his new home, acres of cleared land, just across the Vistula river, just a rock's throw from Krakow. The quaint city shimmered in the background, the river adding ambience.

**CHAPTER I**

It was a few years later, "2030" read all the calendars, and the cleared land was soon filled with city blocks, small buildings and new neighborhoods, sprawling off into the distance. The quaint city of Krakow still sat off in the distance, but now a new sign, "Welcome to Rosulet" sat in the near distance, accompanied by a fresh new blacktop highway. The new town was impressive to the eyes, highlighted by a tall summit hill overlooking the center of town. Various laboratories and shops littered the main streets, and a new tram rail enclosed the south edge of the township, the fresh tracks shimmering in the morning light. With the river to the north along with the train line, business would boom for this new region.

The mayor took a long walk down the main street, inhaling fresh clean air. Since he invested so much of his time and money into making Rosulet a reality, he marveled at the end result.

It didn't take long for throngs of people, Polish, Russian, European and American alike, to settle in this new area. Various scientists, engineers and humanitarians now called Rosulet their home. It was a peaceful time, a productive time. With the shadows of Communism lost in recent history, the locals now cherished in a much welcomed new democracy. Many brilliant minds now worked around the clock, making the community a much better place for themselves and their countrymen.

A French man came to town one day and thought to himself, "What a wonderful opportunity! These people have developed their own version of Utopia. They need the perfect leader. I should be that leader!" The man grinned an evil smile, his handsome moustache twitching horribly. That was the day George Louis Chamel entered Rosulet and changed things forever!

**CHAPTER II**

A young couple sought an opportunity, checking out this new town. They had big dreams of living in a clean, normal neighborhood, devoid of crime. After a wonderful honeymoon, John and Felicia Freeman settled into a brand new 2-bedroom home, nicely equipped with the latest electronic gadgets money could buy. It didn't hurt that John was eligible for a nice home loan to cover all this. He was giddy, carrying his new wife over the threshold. They happily unpacked their meager belongings and set about getting their new life started.

John had recently been hired at one of the local research and development labs, a fledgling engineer. His job did entail some security and secrecy, but Felicia was willing to let him do his work and not nag him for details. She was proud of his success and cherished the time with him.

John started up his brand new hybrid car and started off to his first day of work. On his way, he stopped at a local shop to pick up a nice gift for his wife, something to celebrate all their good luck. Walking out of the shop with a nice crystal necklace, he bumped into a stranger, a man in a blue suit. The package John was carrying hit the ground, the necklace scattering on the sidewalk. The man in the suit stumbled and landed hard on the curb. "Oh, excuse me, sir!" exclaimed John. He offered to help the other man up. The stranger looked up, his handsome mustache twitching, "How dare you! No one dares to insult the new King!" John looked at the new stranger, wondering if he had lost his mind. The man in the suit brushed himself off, giving John a harsh look with his crazy eyes. "I'll have to remember not to cross his path again." Thought John as the two went their separate ways, "What did he mean 'the new King'?" He shrugged and let it go, figuring the man was perhaps off his meds.

As the next few years went by, a new baby boy blessed the Freeman's life. He was a cute blond little boy, normal as far as his parents could tell. They were very happy with their bundle of joy, naming him David, Hebrew for "Beloved" or "Friend". They only wished for little David to be a happy healthy boy. Felicia looked at the calendar, noting it was July 2040. She merely wished for a good life for her son, to be blessed just as much as she and John were, nothing more. In the back of her mind, she always figured her son would go on to do great things.

**CHAPTER III**

An evil tyrant ruled with an iron fist, if such an analogy fit. His rule over the kingdom of Rosulet, Poland, flourished with adept technology as befitted the year 2048. The king and his close allegiance flourished at the expense of the common folk of this province. In the past, Rosulet saw many good times until the selfish King Chamel took the throne. He greedily collected all of the space-age wonders taken for granted by the good citizens of this fair land and reintegrated them into one of the most powerful military armadas known throughout the lands. Could he be compared to past conquerors, Hitler, Napoleon, Saddam? Perhaps. This almighty force consisted of nuclear armaments and high-tech hover-copters, as well as numerous battalions of laser cannons and heavily armed soldiers, all willing to die for their leader.

Rosulet, Poland, stretched out many tens of thousands of acres in all directions. What was once thriving metropolis cityscapes soon degraded into various ghetto hamlets and villages loosely joined together. Run down apartments, small houses and shops dotted the landscape. Overshadowing most of this, stood the illustrious fortress of the king himself, perched upon a tall mountain that jutted from the ground like a grandiose sword. From the summit, King Chamel commanded a breath-taking view of Rosulet and the lands in all directions.

It was in the 7th year of King Chamel's rule that a group of merchants massed their meager monies together and were reluctantly given permission to build a large zoo, all in the glorious name of their esteemed leader. Even though the citizens of Rosulet suffered in terrible poverty, they became ecstatic at this magnificent zoo. Exotic animals from across the hemisphere were there to be viewed, including elephants, tigers, giraffes and zebras.

It was at this zoo that little David Freeman, who recently turned 8, came with his family to enjoy the rare displays. David's father, John, surprised the family by using his lowly technician wages to pay for just such an occasion. It had cost poor John an entire months salary for such an excursion, but to see the look on little David's face was well worth it! Toe-headed, as many little kids are, David was amazed to see so many beautiful animals. His mother, Felicia, happily agreed to this venture. Even though she was both a seamstress and housewife, Felicia and John alike both worried about poor David's recent bouts of depression. They couldn't figure out what caused it, but hoped that this little vacation would cure their son of his melancholy, even if temporarily.

While delighting in the sights of animals he had never seen before, little David chanced upon a cage housing an elegant black panther from the jungles of South America. The poor animal seemed lethargic, but when their eyes met, David caught the slightest glimmer of determination and courage in the panther's eyes and knew then that Fate must have brought them together for some unknown reason. David sensed a struggle for freedom in those dark eyes. The youngest Freeman had never known true freedom since the king forced the populace of Rosulet into servitude just after David's birth. Nevertheless, he experienced an odd sensation, the knowledge that he was chosen to release the people he knew with the help of this exotic creature. Had he overdosed on sugar? This exciting but conversely horrifying insight struck him deep within his psyche and eventually snapped him out of his hypnotic trance. He did not know what to think. He knew one thing for certain – he could not tell his parents of what he just felt. They would think he was making it up.

Later that day, little David went home with his parents, tuckered out by all the excitement. John thought it odd that David was still quiet even after the thrill of the day wore off. He shrugged it off by figuring that his son was still in awe from this new experience. He never did realize how close he was from surmising the truth!

**CHAPTER IV**

During the middle of the night, John Freeman was dreaming that he was a young man again, remembering what it was like before the bad times. In his dream, he stretched back and lazily cruised down his favorite lane, admiring the hangouts and the theatre, where all the hot young women could be found every weekend. John stopped by a lovely group of ladies, wishing to introduce himself, when he was pulled over and an intensely bright light appeared in his window. Young John tried to shield his eyes from the light in an attempt to figure out its source, but couldn't find one. Before he realized it, he was rudely awakened by several of the king's guard, one who had a bright flashlight in John's face. Felicia's attempts to scream were muffled by one of the other guards. The group of soldiers quickly ordered the couple outside, where other families were waiting in bewilderment.

After a few moments of tense silence, several legions of heavily armed troops marched through the streets towards the huddled citizens. King Chamel, in his dark blue uniform, led the marching soldiers. He was a diabolically handsome man who sported a rather old-fashioned mustache. He approached the group of civilians, a content smirk on his face. When he was within a few paces of the families, the smirk quickly vanished, replaced with a very guttural sneer. "Now that I have your attention, dear peasants," quipped the tyrant, "I demand to know who the traitor is!"

This sudden outburst gave rise to resentment among the people, for they considered themselves hard workers and took offense being called peasants. Some shrugged their shoulders and looked at each other. They had no idea what the King was talking about. John Freeman bravely spoke up, "How dare you wake us up from a sound slumber and to add insult to injury bring false accusation!"

The King swiftly focused his attention on John. For a split second, the two men stared eye to eye and John noticed the insanity brewing in the King's eyes, and frankly it scared him. He remembered bumping into this man, years ago, and the exchange they had after Chamel was knocked to the ground by accident. John brought back the remark this man yelled at him, referring to himself as the new King. Without warning, John was abruptly shaken out of his revelry, bound and lined up, execution-style. Felicia and four neighbors were also lined up next to him. Six armed troops lined up opposite of them.

The King's face turned beet-red, and the sweat on his forehead glimmered in the moonlight, "You dare talk back to me! Let this be a lesson to all of you!" He gave a signal and the troops opened fire on the tied-up hostages. Blood blossomed from multiples spots on each person, the force of the bullets causing them to dance erratically. All the victims slumped as far over as their bindings would allow.

Total panic and rage overtook little David's body and he hysterically lunged for his parents, as if this would bring them back. One guard swung his rifle around and the butt hit David squarely in the back of the head. He collapsed in a heap.

King Chamel looked over David's inert body and clucked, "Well, it looks like this brat is an orphan now! The rules state that orphans are illegal in Rosulet. Take him to the dungeon!"

Two soldiers grabbed David and hastily took him back to the castle. Other citizens were also taken into custody to be later interrogated. The King laughed as he observed the people cringing in fear. He had them right where he wanted them.

Two man-sized shadows, holding a child-shaped form, descended into a series of metallic hallways until finally halting at a non-descript prison cell. The door automatically opened and David was brutally thrust into the small room. This metal room was empty of any furnishings except for a single bed and a pot. David cringed as the door closed. He noticed a small portal in the door, seeing the guards outside soon mocking him. David tried to run for the door, hoping he could push it open. He had never dealt with this type of security door and was very surprised when a large electrical discharge rewarded him for touching the door. The guards laughed some more at this dismay, as young David was again thrown to the floor, knocked out cold.

Some time later, David woke up, his senses all out of whack. He vaguely noticed an unusual storm approaching from the north. He got to his knees and prayed to God. In his mind, he pleaded with God as to why he was being tortured so. He wished so badly that he could do something. Lightning began coursing crazily across the night sky and clouds zipped by at incredible speeds.

Across town, as David was deep in prayer, a huge lightning bolt struck the zoo. The bolt unnaturally arced its way through the center and wound towards a particular cage, where a nervous mother panther paced back and forth. Unknown amounts of surged power coursed through her cage and enveloped the scared animal. The lock melted and the panther's eyes began to glow, giving the effect of a pair of will-o-wisps. Her being radically changed, and her face contorted into an unnatural pose. Without hesitation, she bolted out of the cage at top speed and began making a straight course for the center of town, where the castle sat on top of its ominous mountain. New forms of energy pulsed through the altered beast, making her ebony skin eerily shimmer. Without skipping a step, the strange creature liquidly contorted and reformed into a sleek, high speed vehicle. Several scared teenagers scurried out her way as this newly formed speed demon quickly made its way through the winding streets, not even slowing down at curves or corners.

David continued praying, ignoring the blasts of thunder and wind, which sounded like it was threatening to tear down the wall. Another huge blot of lightning connected with the window bars, startling the boy, and a small luminous ball emerged, floating into the cell. As guards' faces appeared at the door portal, little David slowly backed away from the approaching ball of light. He remembered reading about ball lightning a little, and sat transfixed as the white sphere hovered towards him. The ball gave off an odd glow, subtly lighting up the cell room. David backed himself against the wall, as far as he could crawl backwards. The sphere came to a stop, hovering over his head. The glowing orb hung there for a split-second, then burst open like a cracked egg. A splendor of sparks splattered all over David's body, covering him from head to toe. At first, David was convinced that this was some new punishment from the King, but the energy seemed cool and he felt no pain. He started to enjoy the sensation, but confusion overtook him as his senses became warped.

The guards in the hall watched with amazement as the little boy began changing. David's mind was overloaded with vast amounts of new knowledge. He tried to grasp their meaning, but was lost in a humungous sea of information, swirling at tidal wave speeds. David closed his eyes, but could swear he was feeling different. His form enlarged, elongated and thickened. His clothes smoothly changed color, darkening. Several lumps formed on his arms, weighing them down somewhat. When he was first thrown in here, moments ago, he wore a simple brown shirt and dark pants. Now his body was encased in a solid black, silky-soft body suit, which even covered his feet. His hair, which was cut short in a bowl-style haircut, now grew long and thick down past his shoulders. Spots of light shimmered along his new form. He easily stood up and looked about. Why did the cell look so small now? He gave up worrying about any of this and listened to new instincts that begin kicking in. Something was waiting for him, outside the castle walls. He knew he had to get to that something any way he could. He no longer feared his captor. He now felt sorry for them.

Gathering his new-found wits, David charged for the cell door, a locomotive in motion. His new body burst through the force field and automatic armored door without hesitation, sending it screeching across the hall. The guards stupidly still standing there barely got of the way, except for one, who was crushed against the opposite wall. The other guards snapped out of their revelry and tried to draw their rifles. David could not think straight, his mind now taken control by some unknown force. On instinct, he barreled out into the hallway, taking notice of where the guards where now. As the guards aimed at the new intruder, David swung one leg around in a complex kick and broke the nose of the nearest guard, knocking him backwards, where he fell to the floor in a pile and lay still.

The other two guards were startled by the stranger's ultra-fast reactions but were at least able to aim their weapons and tried to fire at the intruder. David subdued them quickly. A quick punch to the jaw took one guard out. He then grabbed the other guard and threw him, as if he were a small toy. This last guard slammed into the collapsed door and met the same fate as his comrades. Another guard ran down the hall toward them, but David quickly pulled out a small, odd-shaped metal star out of a pocket and threw it the guard's direction. The black star whizzed through the air, locked itself into the barrel of the guard's rifle. As the guard recognized he had a blocked weapon, the throwing star detonated, shrapnel lodging into the surprised guard's body.

Without even slowing down, David rushed down the hallway. His mind calmly informed him that his new partner was waiting outside. Enhanced wire-frame schematics of the castle cascaded down his vision, rotating and correcting on the fly to show him the quickest route out. Another guard met him down the hall, and David merely did a forward acrobatic flip, somersaulting over the startled man, not even hesitating in his new quest. He barreled down the remainder of the hallway.

David now found himself at the end of the hall, in a hemispherical antechamber. An open window set on the other end, and the scrolling information over his point of view indicated the window was the quickest way out of here. He jumped at the wall and spider crawled up the wall and across the ceiling. More guards showed up and the general alarms were set off. Bullets bounced off the wall were his feet were a mere fraction of a second earlier.

He abruptly stopped when he got to the window. He quickly panned around the night view outside. The sky was still full of whisking clouds, but the thunder and lightning had abated. One part of his mind screamed in alarm at the ground, which looked a long ways down. Before he could stop himself, the new part of him took over and he leaped out the window, bullets whizzing out behind him into the open night air. The ground came up really fast and his body automatically formed into a neat ball. The instant his feet hit the ground, he did a somersault to cushion the impact. A strange vehicle sat quietly as David rolled to a halt and unfolded, leaping for the car. The driver side door whisked open, and David got in, wondering where his partner was. A dazzling array of touch-sensitive buttons, computerized displays and scrolling diagnostics met his eyes. Amazingly, the vehicle spoke to him. He looked around, as the vehicle sped away, the outside scenery quickly turning into a rapid blur. David began to wonder were he was going, and if he was now sitting in his new partner. The sleek roadster was something he had never seen before, but it became familiar and something he could trust. It seemed so alive!

As soon as the initial shock wore off, David inspected the constantly updating displays. They were showing him quickly calculated analyses of the surrounding environment. A new light caught his eye, indicating the anti-inertia system had been engaged. David took the wheel and continued for the quickest route out of town. The two zoomed through the streets of town, where small shops had been set up. The car completed several 90-degree turns, exceeding over 100 mph in the process. David quietly remarked to himself that he probably would have fainted dead away if he had been part of this whole mess days ago. The car continued zigzagging through town, now over 140 mph. They were soon at the outskirts of Rosulet when the car casually spoke up, "A squadron of Phoenix A-17 jet copters has been spotted approximately 150 yards behind us, at a current altitude of 75 feet." The control panel had a sexy feminine voice. One computer screen began scrolling schematic images, showing structural strengths and weaknesses of the aircrafts quickly approaching them.

The lead copter pilot conferred with his cockpit readouts. His computer informed him that the target being scanned was made of a highly dense, unknown material. Large red letters blared, "ALERT!" repeatedly as his quarry minutely changed shape. An odd-looking pair of barrels emerged from the back quarters of the car, about where the trunk should be located. The pilot started to react when a wall of flame destroyed his field of vision. His craft erupted into a fireball and plummeted to the ground at an intense angle.

The airmen piloting the remaining five whirlybird jets witnessed their leader's sudden demise and let loose with everything they had. With a lot of noise, gatling guns brightly lit up the sky and air-to-surface missiles quickly launched in sequence.

David quickly wondered what would happen to him when all of the fireworks outside caught up to him. He knew he had nothing to do with the first airship's destruction. By his understanding, the car had automatically taken affairs into its own hands, so to speak. His worries were put at ease when the impending attacks bounced harmlessly off the car exterior surface.

While all this was happening, new information quickly filled David's mind. He was starting to get the hang of sorting through the fast data. The car began explaining many of its mysteries via telepathy. It accounted for its nearly perfect invulnerability with a rapid summary of its new polymorphic skin, now made of a layer of carbon atoms compressed to a density of about 2 billion pounds per cubic inch. A neural computer based on designs extrapolated from 30th century technology regulated the density and weight. "My name is F.E.L.I.C.I.A. . It's wonderful to be working with you, Stealth." Felicia? Stealth? As David touched on the name Felicia, his dead mother's name, the acronym scrolled down his vision, Functionally Elite Life-form Independently Capable of Internal Analysis. A eulogy to his murdered mother? Quietly David accepted that his new partner would then be known as Felicia. It just dawned on him that Felicia was also polymorphic, a shape-changer. This could come in handy!

This exchange of information only lasted about 2 seconds or so, and the two soon approached a tunnel on the road outside the kingdom of Rosulet. They entered the tunnel at high speed, just seconds before a pair of explosions sealed it off. Plunged in darkness, Felicia altered her shape once again. Her wheels melted into the bottom of the car and the rear wing expanded in size. As they drew near the other end of the tunnel, Felicia lifted a foot off the ground. A new series of instructions skimmed across the display screen and digital cross hairs appeared. David readied himself for the impending attack and took the controls.

An attack helicopter patiently waited outside with guns ready. The pilots target raced under him at over Mach 1 and disappeared off his screen. David manipulated the controls and set his sights on the jet section of the aircraft. The pilot turned the chopper around and zeroed in on Felicia just as he was blown out of the sky.

The other helicopters rushed in but were no match for Felicia's maneuverability. She wove in and around her adversaries as if they stood still. Three more copters were destroyed within the next 20 seconds. The remaining jet chopper finally managed to set his sights on Felicia and began firing his chain-guns. Felicia picked up speed instantaneously and advanced head-on towards the helicopter. The pilot's weapon systems continued barking out a large retort but to no avail. He screamed in surprise and was cut off as Felicia dove straight into and through his aircraft. She emerged without a scratch, but her foe was not so lucky. His chopper detonated and David watched indifferently as it plunged and smashed apart, hitting the ground below.

David wanted to celebrate, but he knew that his mission was far from over. Felicia changed course and headed back to King Chamel's castle. The fortress came up as an analytical display, icons symbolizing where different sections were located. One icon, a three-triangle hazard symbol, showed where the thermonuclear arsenal was stored. David guided the controls and headed straight for that section.

The king and his commanders were just getting the final tally of their lost ships when they heard additional alarms from an approaching vessel. They knew what had destroyed their airborne squadron was coming back to finish the job!

Strategic artillery laser cannons came to life and klaxons continued bellowing their wail-full calls. Spotlights lit the sky as a dark shape charged the castle perimeter. Thunderous blasts erupted from the fortress, many missing their intended target. What few did score was shrugged off like gnats. David fired several shots and many parts of the castle exploded in a shower of bricks and molten metal. The walls of the dungeon collapsed and many of the prisoners ran for their lives, guards joining them.

The King frantically tried to keep order, but he surmised what the enemy's prime target would be. He ran to the nuclear weapons room in an attempt to evacuate everyone. He entered the main arsenal facility when one of the nuclear warheads went off, killing him instantly.

The citizens of Rosulet were rudely awakened a second time as daylight temporarily washed over the land. A tremendous shockwave flattened segments of town. Many of the people looked up at the mountain summit just in time to view in awe at the gigantic mushroom cloud, which had formed where the castle used to be. Many knew this was the end for the King, and people cheered in the streets.

As the cloud rose and started fading in the night sky, a small dark object darted out. Felicia approached the crowds and changed back into a glimmering panther as she settled down to the ground. David unbridled and stood tall in front of the spectators. He raised his arm and spoke charismatically to the crowd, "Freedom for all! Justice has been served!"

**CHAPTER V**

As the weeks went by, David, or Stealth as he now went by, slowly introduced himself to everybody. He helped out carrying the dead and silently weeping at many of the funerals, especially that of his parents. The people of Rosulet were astounded by his size and strength, some asking questions and little kids checking out his massive muscles and black body suit. He mostly ignored the crowds, being polite but not saying much to those he recently rescued from oppression.

As he blended in more and more, a strange and curious thing happened. He sat depressed in his parents' home. As he held his parents' picture, he gently touched the face of his mother and father, whom he missed dearly. David finally put the picture down, and wandered aimlessly around the house, unsure what to do now. Just as he lay down for bed, an odd sensation ran over his body. He suddenly felt real weak, and his suit no longer shimmered. He crouched onto his stomach due to the queasy feeling and closed his eyes. He set like this for who knows how long, until the feeling went away. David finally opened his eyes and looked around. There was now a shimmering black ball sitting next to him. He looked at his hands and legs. He was a little kid again! Little David ran to the closest mirror and looked at himself. He was still wearing the dirty clothes he had when he was rudely shoved into that dungeon cell. He stared, amazed, at his reflection, wondering if the last few weeks were nothing but a horrible dream. Before he went back to bed, he caught the black ball on the edge of his vision. David picked up the ball, wondering about the moving shimmering sparkles running along its surface. Holding the ball gave him a bizarre tingling sensation. Maybe this wasn't a dream. He finally set the ball aside and hoped to sort all this out later. He was so exhausted, but his mind was racing with questions.

He finally got a fitful night's sleep and woke groggily the next morning. David went to the kitchen, assuming his mom would have breakfast ready for him. He was disappointed to find the house still empty, remembering what happened. A scratching sound caught his attention and he went to the front door to investigate. A large dark feline patiently waited on the front porch, lightly scratching the screen with its front paw. David reluctantly opened the door and let the creature in. The panther sauntered in, giving David a rather intriguing glance. "How do I know this beast?" said David, "What's going on?"

The panther settled down on the living room and continued staring at David, as if she wanted to tell him something. David slowly sat down next to the majestic cat and carefully reached over to pet it. When his hand touched the gentle creature's side, the young man's mind was instantly deluged with images of events that seemed rather familiar. Events that he realized had happened, and some he had done. The panther met his eyes and spoke from what seemed like either inside his head or all around, "Are you ok, little one?" David looked around, but saw no one. He looked back at the black cat, "That's weird. You didn't just say something, did you?"

The cat opened her mouth and let out a small growl, "It was me. I helped you escape that awful place." David stared at the panther, noticing it was a normal, albeit exotic animal, and he was petting it like a little kitty cat. "How are you doing this?" The cat stared at him, its eyes giving off a highly intelligent gleam, "You must come to terms with this, little one. You have been given a wonderful gift, as well as I."

David did remember one thing, "Were you the one that I rode through…. um, that adventure?" The panther nodded, "I know it's tough to lose one's parents, but I am here to help you in any way I can. I must show you something." The big cat rose up and loped back to the front door. She turned her head back to David, still sitting there, "There is something I have that you must protect."

David got up and opened the front door. Outside sat another black ball, identical to the one he left sitting in his room, "What do I do with this?" he inquired as he picked up the ball. Again, this ball also gave off the same surreal sensation while he held it. Numerous lights shimmered along its surface, just like the other ball. "You must disguise these orbs, for in the wrong hands, all is lost!" David thought for a moment before hatching an idea. He went in the garage and found some orange paint. The panther watched him as he returned and slathered paint all over the black ball. He let it sit and dry and looked at his work. Well, it looked sloppy but now the ball looked kind of like an old basketball. He sat down and stared at the panther, "So, your name is Felicia, just like my mom." It was tough for him to say this, thinking about how he missed his mom.

The panther's eyes bore into him, "Yes, David, I will care for you, just like your mom." It took a little bit for David to release that not only was a cat talking to him, but also her mouth never moved, "Ah, you figured out one thing, little one. We are speaking telepathically." David wasn't sure what that meant, being only 8 years old. "David, we are speaking through our minds. We can talk to each other over great distances, at any time. Whenever you need help or guidance let me know. I have been endowed with great wisdom, and enormous amounts of information. When you accept the orb and undergo the change, you will share much of this knowledge."

David carefully painted the other ball, "So, can anyone use the powers of these, uh, balls?" Felicia thought for a second then answered, "No, I believe the wrong person will pay a fair price for trying to access the powers encased in these orbs. Please do not concern yourself with that now. If you want, hide the balls until you need them. Or rather, we need them."

David was startled when someone rapidly knocked at the front door. He looked around and the panther was already gone, hiding in a back room. He slowly got up and answered the door. A neighbor was standing there, smiling. "Well, hello there. You must be David. I knew your mommy and daddy. Shame what happened to them. Um, would you like some help with handling this big house all by yourself?"

David looked around, "Well, I was hungry, but there's no one here to fix breakfast." The neighbor laughed, "That's ok, I can help. Tell you what, there are several friends I want you to meet. It's a shame what happened, but I'm glad that stranger took care of it. Never seen anything like it…"

David wondered, "Will I have to move?" The man smiled, "No, we'll take care of you and make sure you can stay here, if you'd like." David nodded and smiled, "I'd like that."

The man offered his hand and brought little David into the kitchen, where he proceeded to fix up some food, "My name is Joe. I live down the street. I was so shocked when that mean king we had came down, Gestapo style, and killed all those good people for no reason… oh, I'm sorry…" he paused, seeing the tears stream down David's face, "Don't you worry, you'll get the best treatment. The whole neighborhood wants to get together and help out. Somebody will always come by and check with or stay with you, if you'd like." David smiled. Yes, he would like that!

Joe thought for a second, "Say, weren't you the one that was taken away? What happened to you while all the commotion was going on?" David squinted his face, "I don't remember too well. I was in this awful jail cell. Then, next thing I know, I'm outside somewhere. Luckily, I knew how to get back here!" The man considered this, "Yeah, you were lucky, kid. So, how about some bacon and eggs? I'm pretty good at fixing them up." David smiled and his attitude improved. After a nice hearty breakfast, he was introduced to many of the other neighbors, who smiled and waved at him. Some patted his head, insuring him he was going to be all right. Someone inquired whether he had relatives he could live with, but David didn't know if he had any uncles or aunts, or cousins. He never remembered seeing any, never had any visit.

Later that night, one woman from next door came over and read him a story to help him sleep. She kissed him good night and left, "I'll be right next door if you need anything, honey. Can you handle yourself like a big boy?" David nodded.

The woman left, and David lay quietly in his bed, thinking about all that had happened. He felt lucky to have all these new friends. Before he fell asleep, a black shape entered his room and plopped down next to his bed. He felt secure hearing the purring of Felicia. David drifted off, thinking of his mom and dad.

**CHAPTER VI**

He was only aware of lazy clouds, floating thought the air. He tried to reach out and touch them, but was unable to move. His vision was very blurry and he felt cold. He couldn't think straight at all. It actually hurt to think, so he lay there, keeping still, to keep the pain away. Long moments went by, although he couldn't tell what time it was. It went on forever, it seemed, while the dull colors slowly faded to black.

Stealth woke up, slowly, painfully, realizing several things. He couldn't move or speak, and he was lying in a cold location. He could barely see, his vision kept doubling and his eyes kept watering. Soon, a black shimmering shape came into view. It was a black animal, and it took him a little bit to realize it was his partner, Felicia. She came over and licked his face. Her voice boomed in his head, "Are you feeling better?" He squinted his eyes at the loud mental noise. He tried to answer, but it still hurt to think. Felicia licked the top of his head. Her tongue came away with blood and goo. He realized with fear it was his blood and some of his brains. He tried to scream, but his mouth wouldn't work. "Don't struggle! Just lie still and let me help you!"

It took awhile, but soon, Stealth could move his head and adjust his position. He looked around, best he could, and found out he was in a cave. It was snowing fiercely outside. He couldn't see much out there, and decided he was better off where he was. A makeshift blanket was wrapped around him. The ground was cold but somewhat comfortable. When he could finally move his arm, he reached tentatively and touched his head. The hair was matted with blood and sticky. He winced, feeling, sharp protrusion out of a hole in his head. Sickeningly, he discovered, he was touching jagged pieces of scalp and skull sticking out. Stealth quickly moved his hand away, wiping it off in the nearby snow.

"What happened?" he thought. His mouth still didn't want to work, and it took a lot of effort just to lick his lips. Felicia curled next to him, "One step at a time. Please, David, let the healing do it's work. You were lucky I got you out of there before any of his henchmen could get to you!" David wanted so badly to ask more, but his head kept hurting. He finally drifted back to sleep, his vision becoming black and he welcomed the puffy pink clouds when they arrived. He slept for a long time. When he finally awoke, it was a little warmer and the snow was gone. David got up, noticing he was undergoing the change. His arms and legs were in the now familiar black body suit and he was heavily muscled again.

He tried again to feel his head. The pain was mostly gone. A quick feel of his hand revealed that his head was mostly healed up and the sticky blood was gone. His hand came away dry and he was relieved. But he kept wondering what happened to him. Felicia came over and began relaying the events of the last month or so to him, some of it in excruciating detail. Where to begin? "What's the last thing you remember?" The black cat looked deeply into Stealth's eyes and probed for a response, emotional or otherwise. "Well, I remember going to sleep in my bed at home. Oh, God, I want to go home!"

Felicia shook her head, "I'm sorry, little one, but after what I tell you, you can never go back." Stealth sat quietly, absorbing some new bad news. He wanted to cry, but not as a grown up. He relaxed and let the energy slowly ebb out of him. Little David closed his eyes and cried as he became a little boy once again, "Have things gotten that bad in that safe town I lived in?"

Felicia settled next to him and began telling the events leading up to the present, "Well, your first day back to school started out normal enough. You got some help getting your schedule back and your teacher was nice enough to help you out anyway you needed." The panther's tone changed slightly, "It was after school several days later that some older kids started picking on you, thinking you were a coward and teasing you when they found out you were living alone. They hounded you after school one day and followed you home. You tried to outrun them, but it was no use, they stormed into your house and pushed you around, picking for a fight. The biggest kid started smashing things and one of the other kids found one of the orbs. The leader bully tried to swipe it and thought it was a stupid old ball, but when he touched it and tried to pick it up, something happened just like I warned would happen. The kid was knocked back by an energy discharge and an ambulance had to come get him." David's eyes got big, "Is he ok? I wish I could have seen that… I mean, is he ok?" Felicia tilted her head, "Of course, but I believe he will think twice about pestering you again. The other kids ran scared, to be expected!"

"So, is that why I can't go back?" asked David.

"That's part of it. I'm afraid I interfered and made sure you were never welcome back again." The panther lowered her eyes, "I'm so ashamed at what I did. I know I'm better than this!" David looked at her lowered eyes, "What happened?"

"The other kids and some of your neighbors saw me. I was only trying to help you, but they freaked out and tried to chase me off. Someone called the animal shelter and they tried to capture me. I had no choice but to advice you to leave and undergo the change, as I also did. Well, your secret identity has been compromised, as well as my hidden presence there."

"Wait, if we went back and explained, I'm sure they would understand. They're my friends!"

Again, Felicia lowered his eyes, "It's not that simple. I tried to come back to the house later that night, but there were protestors lining the street. Some zoo trucks were swarming the area, looking for me, I believe. The kid who was hurt from handling the orb was treated for major burns to his hands and arms. They blame you and me for that, although they don't know what really happened."

Felicia gave off what sounded like a sigh. Her voice gently resonated through David's head, "I thought it would be safer to leave and not come back. We left Rosulet and I got information about a mafia gang in the nearby city of Krakow, so I figured we should investigate, test out your powers and abilities."

**CHAPTER VII**

David sat cold and shivering. The panther promptly brought over a small blanked, using her teeth. As David snuggled into the cozy blanket, Felicia went back to the corner and brought back a canteen, "Here, drink some of this. It's only water, but it will help your thirst." He greedily slurped down several large shots of water. He was very thirsty, kind of hungry, too.

As he sat there in the dark, the cave lit dimly by his shimmering orb and the panther's eyes, she continued, "I was very proud of your actions. You did the right thing and let your new instincts dictate your approach. We quickly found the warehouse headquarters of the Silver Snake gang, a local Polish mafia that had been threatening the entire area for decades. They had become dangerous and even the local police were unable to stop them. Do you remember anything from the encounter we had with them?"

David scratched his head. It still stung a little to think, but he finally shook his head, "It's a complete blank. I can't remember anything. I didn't even know where I was until you woke me up and took care of me. Why was my head bleeding?"

Felicia snorted, "Please, in good time. We will get to that. I must retell your legacy, as well as your downfall." David looked confused, upset, as Felicia continued, "Well, as we entered the headquarters, we fearlessly and easily handled the many henchman they threw at us. I must admit it was an exciting fight. You took down multiple enemies with the ease of a giant slaying little insects. We split up, you making a really obvious distraction, while I hunted for the leader."

The panther hesitated for a moment. David looked at her, was she crying? She slowly resumed, "I had just relayed the location of the kingpin's inner lair and could hear the approaching carnage of your presence when a single shot went out and things got quiet. I quickly located you and went to investigate. Even though you have an amazing poly suit and nearly unmatchable fighting skills, someone found a flaw and exploited it. It took me a little bit to find the sniper that got off the lucky shot. Your head was…." Yes, she was crying, or sobbing, at least, "um, your head was very damaged. A shot like that to a normal person is instantly fatal. There was blood pooled all around your prone head, and you lay very still. I had to quickly abandon the mission and carry your limp body out of there."

David realized his mouth was wide open, "Uhhh, how come I didn't die from that? Well…" Felicia calmed him, "One of your suit's powers is rapid regeneration." Upon seeing his little confused face, she tried to explain, "You have amazing healing powers while in the change. However, since much of your brain and head was tore apart, I had to find a safe spot and hope you would recover. I don't know what I would do if you had perished…." She turned away, sobbing. David got up and hugged her, "Well, I'm ok, I feel good. I guess it worked." He tried to sound tough, but inside, he was feeling really nauseous and wasn't sure he could stand again. He realized he should have died, but this black cat saved his life, gave him the chance to recuperate.

He finally asked, "So, how long have I been here, healing?" Felicia looked at him, "For nearly four months. That is why it is imperative that the suit needs to evolve and never let this happen again. It is important that you learn how to instruct the suit to evolve and change as you need. You must understand that your wonderful suit, endowed with the powers of the orb, has an amazing array of special powers and abilities. We must find out how to use the almost limitless potential it has to offer. Come, let us try an experiment."

She led little David back to the shimmering orb, "Please, little one, touch the orb and let the change happen again. It is important." David thought about it and realized she was right, but he was scared. He reluctantly picked up the black sphere and willed for its powers. A swelling of power interweaved into his being and he soon looked down at the ground at a taller advantage point. The suit completely wrapped itself around his body, except for his head. He could still feel the chilly breeze rustle his hair, "How do I do this? What am I trying to accomplish?"

Felicia looked up at him, "You must envision a protective seal of some kind encasing your vulnerable head. You must believe the suit will respond to your whims." Stealth shrugged his shoulders and closed his eyes, thinking of various hats, helmets, and jacket hoods that might work. He finally envisioned a collapsing ninja headpiece, although no ninja had ever really worn one like the one he was now thinking of. As the image crystallized in his mind, he could feel a strange sensation at the back of his neck. The suit was expanding somewhat. He could feel more of its surface covering his neck and throat. As he continued envisioning the helmet folding out and covering his entire head, his imaginary new addition became a reality. He could hear clinking noises as shimmering plates unfolded and expanded, covering the back half of his head. He quickly realized that he needed some way to see and imagined sleek black built-in lenses, covering and protecting his eyes. As the helmet continued covering his head, it changed and a pair of built-in goggles formed and settled over his eyes, giving him enhanced vision, the faceplate folded out and settled down the front of the throat, connecting with the rest of the suit covering his chest. He cautiously walked to the edge of the cave, looking out. There were no other people anywhere near them. It looked like they up on a large hill or small mountainside, he wasn't sure. He focused on the goggle view and got them to give an enhanced night-vision, could zoom in and out with great efficiency, and brought up one setting labeled infrared. He didn't see any change until he looked around and back at Felicia. Her form took on any eerie glow, more red and purple than he'd ever seen before. Stealth started to wish the helmet to fold back, although he noticed he had no problems breathing with it engaged.

He wandered back to where he sat before and the panther nudged him, "Another ability you possess is the power to blend into your environment. Thus the name given to you." Stealth wasn't sure what she meant. "Stealth, imagine yourself as a figure of power, but others can see through and hardly see you at all. Visualize your being as made of clear glass, smooth and polished." He shook his head again, that's impossible, he thought, it must be, no one can really do that, but he tried. If he was named by the ability of stealth and hiding, it must be possible. He thought of his suit turning transparent, the shimmering black being replaced by the colors of items behind him. He strained for a while, not sure if anything was happening.

The voice of Felicia startled him, "You are doing it, little one! Open your eyes now!" Stealth opened his eyes and looked down at himself. He couldn't see the familiar shimmering and glittering of his suit. In fact, he couldn't tell what he was looking at. Felicia tugged at him, "Please, walk out in the open." He hesitated, but the cat spoke up, "It's ok, trust me."

He stepped out in the night, the moon lighting up the mountainside. He brought up his arms and tried to find them. He looked close and could see a slight shimmering, similar to finely carved crystal. He could see the background and the ground below through his arms, the slightest distortion evident, "This is amazing! How am I able to do this?"

Felicia came up to him, "I am aware of some of the suit's potential abilities. If you can imagine the suit performing these abilities, the suit will do them. As you get accustomed to these new powers, the ability to make them happen will become second nature to you. What you are observing is your suit's ability to almost perfectly bend light around its surface. As I explain earlier, this suit and my morphing abilities are based on technology observed from the 30th century."

Stealth looked at Felicia, "How can you have technology from the future like that?" The black cat purred, "I'm not fully sure, but I wouldn't question it. It has been given to you as a gift. Merely accept it and use it as a tool for combating any evils in the world."

Stealth relaxed, and sat down in the cave. His helmet folded back, clacking as it went. The camouflage effect instantly disappeared, and as he relaxed the immense power flowed out of him. Soon, a familiar ball sat next to him, the constant hypnotic shimmering field of tiny stars continuously flowing over its surface. Felicia sat down next to him, "As you noticed, your suit must be sealed to acquire the stealth ability. Hopefully, as you master these powers, you will become more dangerous and mysterious to your enemies, and a greater legend to those that need your help." David curled up next to the familiar large cat and thought about the possibilities, and frankly, it was staggering. Sometimes he wished he could give it up and have his parents back. Thinking of his mom and dad made him sad inside, but he began to trust this mother panther. She was becoming smarter and wiser each day. It was hard to believe that she was once a wild animal.

The cat gently licked his face, "You're not the only one with potential powers. I've been thinking of things, since the contact with my orb has made me much smarter. It seems I'm more limited to only changing my form, but I have not even yet found the limit of what I can change to.

David looked at her, "What can you change into?"

The feline looked at him then stared at the far wall. She stood there for a moment, transfixed. Soon, her formed altered and she got taller. She sauntered over to little David, a curvaceous human female. She looked stunning in the dark cave, although her glimmering eyes betrayed her real form. As she approached David, she stood over him and he could see the now familiar shimmering lights racing over her form. He looked hard at her face, but she had no facial features, except for a pair of lantern eyes. She held an ebony hand to his shoulder, "Well, would this suffice as a mother figure?" David didn't know what to think, he was stunned. He finally stammered, "Uh, what other forms can you assume?" She knelt down next to him, "It appears almost any form, if you can ignore the pitch black surface and my eyes. I can grow much larger, but my surface weakens at larger sizes."

"So, how much have you practiced this?" Felicia looked at him, "Well, I can't get any smaller than this form or my original, but I have tried shapes similar in size to a large yacht. When you are feeling better and would like to practice with your potential powers, I will show you more. For now, rest." She slimmed down into a feline form and nested next to him, "Here, I'll keep you warm. Get some sleep."

**CHAPTER VIII**

The weather warmed up somewhat and became mild when little David and the panther left the cave. The two quietly wandered into the nearest town, Krakow, but decided to lay low for the time being, in case the mafia gang they dealt with was still looking for them. A small boy was pretty inconspicuous, even though a large black cat would be harder to hide. They decided to take their chances, perhaps using a story of being from a local circus. Hopefully, nobody would freak at the sight of a loose panther.

"Now, David, we must train you in other various forms of combat and defense." Felicia's soothing thoughts rattled through his head. He was getting rather used to listening to his new partner, who he sometimes wanted to also consider his mother, his guardian, his safety. David acquired a backpack, which now housed 2 rather unique orbs, their weight making him have to shift the pack around a lot, "This thing is heavy!" he complained in his thoughts, "where are we going?"

The cat looked at him, "We must establish a hideout - I mean, we need to find a safe place to stay." The panther scanned the area, looking for a homeless shelter or some out of the way motel, "Hopefully, we will not attract any attention until we are ready."

Their luck seemed good for a while. No one noticed a stray boy accompanied by a wild animal wandering the streets. Apparently, they did not stick out, or the locals were too preoccupied to really care. Whatever the case, the two finally found a shelter they could stay at, and were given a free room for privacy. Felicia touched her orb. She tried subtly shape-changing into a hunched down woman, and wore some old ratty clothes to hide her dark skin and put on a pair of black sunglasses to hide her missing facial features. Little David bravely explained they were strangers in town and that his aunt was mute and could not speak. She was also somewhat mentally ill, so he was taking care of her the best he could. The lady in charge shrugged her shoulders. The two strangers seemed nice enough and were ragged in appearance. A nice clean room would do wonders for them.

As night fell, the two took full advantage of a private room. David brought out the orb and held it, letting the change overtake him. When he was ready, Felicia settled next to him and began a new set of lessons, "Now, Stealth, if you will notice the blunt scabbard on your hip, extract the sword held within." Stealth looked down at the square nub set on his right hip, "How can something that small contain something long like a sword?" He felt the handle set into the scabbard. The cat gestured, "Just carefully pull the sword handle."

He grabbed the handle and began pulling. An elegant ebony blade began emerging, perhaps unfolding, as he continued pulling the handle. When he was finished, he now held a sword nearly 5 feet long, it's surface shimmering, its edge infinitely sharp, "That is your sword of justice, if you'll excuse the corny phrase. Its name is Talembar." Stealth held out the sword. It appeared as a long wide blade, the strength and thickness of a broad sword, combined with the elegance of a Samurai sword. He began slowly swinging the blade, carving a beautiful figure 8 in the air, instructions scrolling down his field of view. Soon, he swung the sword faster and carved more intricate patterns in the air.

"If you can trust your new powers, you can wield that blade at near supersonic speeds and the sword can deflect many types of projectiles." Stealth brought the twirling blade to a halt, studied its haunting beauty one last time before sheathing it into its impossibly small housing, "The blade is compressed while in its scabbard." Stealth was still getting used to being able to do what seemed impossible, and having incredible tools and weapons merely added to the mystique.

At early dawn, little David and the hunched over lady quietly left their shelter before anyone knew they were gone. "It is time, little one, we must finish the task we started last winter. We must eliminate that evil mafia and its crime boss. Are you up to the task?" David thought for a moment, "As long as I believe I can succeed, I am ready!"

**CHAPTER IX**

They waited patiently until nightfall, taking in the city. As darkness fell, little David took a deep breath and grabbed the orb, letting the change overtake him. He embraced the rapid alterations in his perception, and stood proud. "I say we should allow them a chance to give themselves up to the local authorities."

Felicia mentally smirked, "I doubt they will willingly give themselves up, but it is the honorable thing to do." The two casually made their way over to the same warehouse that they knew the mafia was working out of. From their current information, the Silver Snake gang was handling contraband arms, as well as petty crimes, including roughing up local merchants. The neighborhood sort of put up with the activities, even though most wanted them to be rid of. The cops were either afraid or bought off by the head honcho.

Near midnight, as many henchman were busy loading crates and checking off checklists, a lone man in a dark glistening outfit walked towards one of the main entrances, a large black feline at his side. It didn't take long before over a dozen henchmen were crowded near the large door, their assault rifles snapping into place.

One large man, dressed in a typical striped suit, stoking a fat cigar, confronted the stranger, "Hey, what are you doing here? Wait a minute, I recognize you. I thought we killed you!" One of his buddies spoke up, "What, are you back for more?!" Several more men showed up, some carrying various billy clubs and nightsticks. "Listen, for your own good, you'd better leave and never show your scrawny ass around again!"

Stealth cautiously sauntered up near the lead man, "Listen, I am willing to forgo any conflict and allow you the chance to willingly give yourselves up to the local authorities. However, I give only one chance!"

Some of the men stared, slaw-jacked. Many of them couldn't believe their ears! There was a lot of laughter that echoed through the night. David patiently waited for a response.

The lead henchmen raised his weapon, "Either you're suicidal or the stupidest dumb shit I've ever dealt with." He spit at Stealth's feet. Stealth sighed, "Oh, well, gentlemen, it's your funeral." No sooner had he uttered those final words, when his sword quickly came out of its tiny sheath, an odd clanking noise was heard as a mechanical helmet covered his head, and within a split-second, his form became transparent.

"Shit, where'd he go?" snarled the leader. He opened fire on the stranger's last position, but the bullets merely covered empty air, "Damn it, lock down the warehouse! Find that asshole!" Most of the henchman spread out, guns at the ready. They scanned the walls and ceilings, looking for any indication of where the stranger went.

Stealth quickly climbed the north wall, looking for the main leader. The others forgot Felicia was still there and she took advantage of that, creating quite a distraction. She tore through several of the men, bullets harmlessly bouncing off her ebony skin. One of the crew swung at her, only to break his hand in several spots. She returned the favor by tearing out his throat. Several of the group backed up into a corner. Two of them spotted a glimmering shadow land in between them. The two leveled their assault rifles and opened fire. Stealth was on the move before they could react and the two men merely riddled each others bodies with rapid fire.

A quick swish was heard by another. He turned to find the noise, and was split in half before he could figure out where it came from. A nearly invisible hand reached out and tossed one of the surprised henchmen. He landed in an oily puddle and skidded against a nearby wall. One of his buddies swung his nightstick towards the see-through enemy and was brutally kicked in the head. The man slumped as the others ran in all directions.

Stealth watched from a new position on the ceiling as his sidekick bore down on several of the fleeing men. He switched over to thermal imaging and isolated the mafia leader's cozy little office. The man's image came up on his HUD, the name 'Antonio Cellestras' highlighted beneath the profile.

He dropped to the floor, and quickly ran to the office. One of the henchmen had just entered and was relaying the disturbance, "Boss, you gotta get out here. There's a ….. urk!" when he stopped and his head and one shoulder slid off the rest of his torso in one gruesome piece. The man hesitated and then collapsed. Stealth walked in behind the fallen man, his 6-foot, 9-inch frame filling most of the door. He walked up to the nervous leader, who was now sweating profusely, maybe wetting himself, Stealth wasn't sure.

"Now, I will give you one more chance, even though I shouldn't. You will surrender and give yourself up to the local authorities." The man answered with a sharp whistle, and two large men immediately showed up behind him, "You two know what to do!" Stealth raised his hand, palm forward, and an invisible force shoved Antonio, plastering him to the wall behind him. He struggled and tried to breath, but the force holding him was slowly crushing him. The two large men jumped Stealth, but were batted off quickly, probably too quickly by Antonio's taste. Whatever was crushing him to the wall let go, and he collapsed to the floor. In a second, he snagged a small stiletto from his boot and rushed Stealth, determined to end this.

Stealth was knocked over by the leader's momentum and the two struggled on the floor. Antonio managed to get his blade up to Stealth's neck, but it didn't last. Stealth's instincts kicked in and a trio of jagged ninja-style blades grew from his right forearm. He jabbed the leader in the chest with the glimmering blades and the leader collapsed, holding his chest, his hands and arms covered in his blood. Stealth stood over him, waiting. "Why don't you finish me off? You've ruined my operation!" Antonio spat blood. He squinted and winced as the pain in his chest throbbed. Stealth patiently knelt next to him, "I am willing to let you live and turn you over to the authorities myself." The crime boss sniveled, "Don't bother. I'm not impressed by your crude form of chivalry!"

Against his will, Antonio was lifted and carried painfully and dropped off at the nearest police station. The police were startled to find a known criminal waiting at their doorstep. He reluctantly allowed the cops to handcuff him and place him in a jail cell. He made one last note and wondered if any of his henchmen escaped or were still alive.

In a back alley, Felicia consoled with little David, "Why did you let him live? He will rebuild his little empire and be back on the streets sooner than you think." David looked at her, "Well, I think we made quite an impression on him. I had to stop myself from actually killing him as it was. After slaughtering everyone associated with King Chamel, it got me thinking about being generous when it's needed. Beside, he knows if he doesn't go straight, we'll be looking for him." This brought a mental smile from Felicia, "That was a most noble act, little one. I am proud of you and rather shameful I wished for his head on a stake."

David thought for a moment, "You know, when I confronted that crime boss, and he tried to send his best men after me, I wanted to keep him stuck to the wall and I did it. How did I do that?" Felicia looked up at him, "Another power you've discovered, little one, the power to move objects with your mind. As you learn and train more, you will learn to use many of these powers and they will become second nature soon enough."

The two quietly left town later that week. They knew that crime would be less of a problem in Krakow thanks to them. They took to the road, creating new legends and stories wherever they went.

**CHAPTER X**

**(Coming down to their level –or- messing with the locals)**

It's been a few years, it's now 2053, Stealth and Felicia took care of many a bandit, warlord, whatever came along. It was time for a fresh start, a vacation. Little David had heard wind of a retro drifting contest in Kovin, Yugoslavia. The once little town of Kovin had become famous (or infamous) for illegal drifting competitions, which were banned in many other countries. Word had spread of a famous scam artist who liked to entice other racers into believing they could beat him in a simple drift contest, and then he would use any unethical means to make sure he won, usually at the cost of the other racer's life.

So, little David managed to sign up for the local drift race, balking at questions as to what ride he was using or who was driving. He merely shrugged and said he knew a guy that wanted to race, but would like to remain anonymous until the opening ceremonies.

When the first set of celebrations began, all the entries vehicles were to be inspected and shown off for the amusement of the locals that could not afford such luxurious whips. Little David casually wandered in, a peculiar large black feline in tow. Some of the judges became impatient and demanded to know what car was entered and the name of the driver, for they knew a 13-year-old was far too young to compete. David played with his black basketball and pondered a moment before responding. He looked up at the judges, "He'll be here tonight for the end of the show-off competitions." Even though the judges didn't care much for the term he was using to label their beloved exhibition, it seemed to ease their anger a little.

As night wore on, a sense of strangeness perked up as a mysterious black vehicle rolled into the parking lot display. It was a unique design, rather feline in trim, with an all black exterior. When the curious got a closer look, some noticed the unusual shimmer of lights dancing across the surface and many figured it to be a trick of the light or merely an illusion to scare them. One of the racers wandered over, looking at the new entry, "That's a rather, uh, unique car model. Where did you get it?" Stealth merely nodded, "My own creation, nothing more." As the other racers and audience gawked, Stealth quietly suggested to Felicia to turn off her inertial dampener and assume a less imperviousness mode. She was quizzical, but understood that simulated damage would be an acceptable part of this.

As part of the evening procession, a normal inspection of the engine add-ons was nothing new. When the judges came to Felicia, they noticed all there was under the hood in back was a black sphere with tubes connected to each side. One judge wondered, "What is in this thing?" He tapped on the sphere. Stealth smiled a little, "Ever kissed the sun?" The judge merely shrugged and mentioned, "Well, you can keep your add-ons a secret, but it will cost you points."


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER X

**(Coming down to their level –or- messing with the locals)**

It's been a few years, it's now 2053, Stealth and Felicia took care of many a bandit, warlord, whatever came along. It was time for a fresh start, a vacation. Little David had heard wind of a retro drifting contest in Kovin, Yugoslavia. The once little town of Kovin had become famous (or infamous) for illegal drifting competitions, which were banned in many other countries. Word had spread of a famous scam artist who liked to entice other racers into believing they could beat him in a simple drift contest, and then he would use any unethical means to make sure he won, usually at the cost of the other racer's life.

So, little David managed to sign up for the local drift race, balking at questions as to what ride he was using or who was driving. He merely shrugged and said he knew a guy that wanted to race, but would like to remain anonymous until the opening ceremonies.

When the first set of celebrations began, all the entries vehicles were to be inspected and shown off for the amusement of the locals that could not afford such luxurious whips. Little David casually wandered in, a peculiar large black feline in tow. Some of the judges became impatient and demanded to know what car was entered and the name of the driver, for they knew a 13-year-old was far too young to compete. David played with his black basketball and pondered a moment before responding. He looked up at the judges, "He'll be here tonight for the end of the show-off competitions." Even though the judges didn't care much for the term he was using to label their beloved exhibition, it seemed to ease their anger a little.

As night wore on, a sense of strangeness perked up as a mysterious black vehicle rolled into the parking lot display. It was a unique design, rather feline in trim, with an all black exterior. When the curious got a closer look, some noticed the unusual shimmer of lights dancing across the surface and many figured it to be a trick of the light or merely an illusion to scare them. One of the racers wandered over, looking at the new entry, "That's a rather, uh, unique car model. Where did you get it?" Stealth merely nodded, "My own creation, nothing more." As the other racers and audience gawked, Stealth quietly suggested to Felicia to turn off her inertial dampener and assume a less imperviousness mode. She was quizzical, but understood that simulated damage would be an acceptable part of this.

As part of the evening procession, a normal inspection of the engine add-ons was nothing new. When the judges came to Felicia, they noticed all there was under the hood in back was a black sphere with tubes connected to each side. One judge wondered, "What is in this thing?" He tapped on the sphere. Stealth smiled a little, "Ever kissed the sun?" The judge merely shrugged and mentioned, "Well, you can keep your add-ons a secret, but it will cost you points."

The judges left and little David waited until everybody was busy before undertaking the change. His large form stood up and he walked over to the invitation booth, "I'm the driver for #43, the sheer black ride." The 3 young people there all looked up at him, their mouths wide open. The left-most person, a young woman, smiled at the very large handsome man, instantly wishing he was hers. Her thoughts were interrupted by one of the sneers from across the booth. The right-most man laughed, "Ok, never seen you before, but it's your funeral. The other drivers have built a rep and you need to do the same!" Stealth nodded, and the girl secretly hoped he would win and marry her. She blushed and looked down as Stealth took his badge and signed in.

The large man walked up to his ride, the others either mocking him or merely staring. Some gawked, figuring even if he sucked at drifting, they figured he could kick anyone's ass who got in his way. He merely looked at the other racers, nodded and got in his car. All the racers buckled in, revved their engines. All the noise overshadowed the quiet, barely audible hum Felicia gave off. Her sensor lights winked on, and the "enable collision damage" light winked on as the last in line.

The lady with the flag wandered out, the crowd whistling and cheering her on. She winked at someone in the audience, and held the colored flag up. The cars revved even louder. The cute girl held the flag then slammed it down, signaling the race was on! The cars streaked down the street, lines of smoke rising in the quiet air. Felicia surged forward but merely kept pace, to keep inconspicuous. The others jeered as they passed the black car, the others white, and various other colors. Black was a color that was out of style, but it didn't matter to Stealth, it was the last thing on his mind. He gunned the pedal a little more and caught up quickly to the others. He passed two cars as the lead car drifted around the first hairpin curve, followed by the next two. One pushed the next and that car wiped out, tumbling down the steep cliff. The lead car sped up after completing the first curve, signaling the others to catch up or be left behind. Stealth felt a bump from behind and the rear of the car was crinkled, but Felicia continued onward, ignoring the damage. She weaved in and out of the others until the black car was in 3rd place. The second car behind the lead tried to pass up the head car, but the leader cheated and shot a dual path of oil out of the rear of his car. Number 2 slid and tried to maintain control, looking like it was trying to drift too early. It slammed into a nearby wall and flipped, flames bursting up from the now topside underbelly. The other cars ignored it and played catch-up. Stealth zoomed up into 2nd place and bumped the lead car, antagonizing him into doing something. The lead car was shaken and slipped aside slightly as Stealth stole into first place. Felicia executed a perfect drift into the next curve, followed tightly by the blue car in 2nd. The leader, now in 2nd, fired a small rocket at Felicia's tail wing, warping the delicate boomerang shape. She shuddered and as she slowed down, the blue car lept up and rammed her from behind. Felicia tumbled off the track, over and over, until crashing at the bottom of the ravine. Smoke settled then stopped, as the drivers ignored the wreck and zoomed on. Another car flew off the track before the next curve and crashed nose-first into the bottom, igniting a few bushes as it landed harshly. Stealth waited a few more moments, as the cars descended out of earshot, then flipped the little switch off, "enable collision damage" winking off. The car shuddered, remolded and reformed, slight creaks and an odd fluid noise, barely audible, accompanied the car magically flipping onto its' wheels. The tires melted in and the car merely rolled in mid-air before the lights came on and the vehicle rose into the sky. The driver in the wrecked bush car barely noticed a black shape rise into the sky before blacking out from shock.

Felicia swept the sky, sensors realigning as her prey took center console. The blue car highlighted, systematic elements showing the car's current status, and secret weapons highlighted and scrolled down the side. The driver's name, Eduardo Fenuzuala, a thug with the French Sovieta mob, was listed, with a felony chart. This was an arrest in transition, the race was a ruse to find this elusive criminal. He was most wanted on NATO's list of top 50 criminals, a 5 million Euro bounty on his head. Stealth wasn't interested in the money, only taking this scum off the street and out of the circuit! The two worked as one and headed straight across the sky, ignoring honking geese as they went along. The black air car caught up to the racers in a matter of minutes, and Felicia swept ahead for a convenient spot to tag the car and disable it. She calculated a spot that would allow the car to be knocked off onto a side ramp, without the other cars being the wiser.

The blue car, Eduardo smiling inside, approached an old barn with a side road next to it. Felicia approached from aside of the barn and tagged the driver's side tires, firing a small, almost undetectable beam of light. The tires foomed out of existence, mere smoky rubber and the driver panicked as his car veered onto the side road. His car rolled to a stop. He smacked the steering wheel, and tried to open the door. A large black shape roared out of the sky and slammed into his door, crushing his hand. He whimpered and held his hand, puzzled at the sudden collision. He was rudely extracted from the car, through the open window and knocked out before knowing who it was. His vision darkened and he saw a familiar large dark man with a strange large cat, its' fur impossibly smooth and roaming with stars along its' surface. Stealth lifted the prone man, as Felicia changed back into air car mode. Stealth got into the vehicle and rolled the stunned man into the passenger seat. Restraints overlapped him, just in case. Stealth smiled and rolled the vehicle back into upper atmosphere, beyond the range of local fighter jets. He quickly left and re-entered air space above Paris, France before landing at the local NATO subsquadron building, branched off from the main NATO of France, located in Brussels, Belgium. The door rattled and two surprised officers found a bundled man they immediately recognized. They looked around for who made the noise, but no one was there. One man scratched his head as the two quickly carried the prone prisoner inside.

Stealth checked his sources and confirmed that Fenezuala was checked off the top list, the next day. Little David felt relieved to help out in his own anonymous way, as Felicia licked his face. The boy smiled and wondered what he should do next. He had heard of a mob leader who took off in southern Ireland, embezzling the very crime syndicate he was suppose to protect. So, David hitched a ride to Ireland on a chicken truck headed from Italy and westbound.

CHAPTER XI

The truck carrying a small boy and quiet large black cat made its way to the port of northern France, waiting for a ship to ferry it to Great Britain and Ireland, the Green Jewel. David wondered if he had relatives there in Ireland, but really didn't know. He still never his family besides his parents, and they were in no condition to tell him anything anymore. He looked down and thought about his parents, how much he still missed them. He slept as the ferry ship made its way through the Port of Wales, before departing for the main island of Ireland. He woke up as the horn blew and a voice mentioned they were approaching the great port of Dublin. The driver checked with him, wondering if he wanted a ride anywhere. David wasn't sure and nodded, "I'll check in Dublin". The driver smiled and agreed, "Good luck" he said in Italian.

Little David wandered the street of Dublin, chancing on a small school on the outskirts. He stopped and ate lunch before asking for a drink of water from one of the teachers he met. The teacher wondered why he wasn't in school. David shrugged and said he was on a field trip from Wales. The teacher rolled his eyes, "Aye, whatever…." He showed the boy where the water fountain was and David drank a fair amount of water.

After finishing, he turned around and ran into someone. David blinked his eyes and a slim figure stood over him. She reached down and offered a hand, "I'm sorry, are you ok?" He blinked, she had a nice Irish accent and her face swam into focus. She was pretty, brown hair with equal colored eyes and a nice smile. David was helped to his feet, "Yeah, I'm ok. Thanks" He smiled and she responded, "Ok, what's your name? Mine's Inara." He thought for a moment, "I'm David. I never heard that name before." She shrugged, "Well, it's the name I was left with at the orphanage in Mullingar. I don't know who my parents are. I guess they didn't want me." She sighed, "Oh, I'm sorry, David, it was nice meeting you." She started to leave, but David stopped her, "Um, do you know any of the local gangs in this area? I've been told to report to one. I'm a soldier." She stopped and turned around, "You're a tad young to be a soldier." He snorted, "I'm 14, old enough!" She laughed, "Oh, I'm sorry, me bucko, you're right." She blushed, this young boy was only 10 years younger than her, but she didn't know many even at this school. "I can show you around, if you fancy." David nodded and they agreed to meet at a local tavern.

David met Inara later in front of a pub near the northern part of town, the Guinness Hop Store. David shrugged and took an outside table, while Inara got a drink. She offered the boy a coke. He smiled and took a sip. The lights came on as dusk approached and a dark shape approached. Inara almost choked on her beer as she recognized what looked like a black tiger. She motioned David to get behind her. The boy spun around and leaped for the cat. The panther stopped and allowed David to pet it, as tame as a kitty. She put away a sword and cautiously approached, "How do ye know this wild beast?" Her eyes were wide, and never left the strange creature. David looked up at her, "Oh, long story. Um, there are a few things odd about me I need to tell you. You'll find them hard to believe, but I kinda need your help." She blinked, "My help? Laddie, if you have such a powerful beast under your control, you're not needing my help!"

David pulled out a strange black orb out of his backpack and sighed, "Um, well, I've been told by this creature that yes, I do!" She looked at the panther, "Have ye been sipping the persimmon juice? You must be daft, that doesn't make any sense!" David looked at the black cat, "I told you she wouldn't believe me." He nodded, "You think I should? I don't know…." He sighed again, "Ok…" He held the orb up to arm level, "Well, you wanted to believe, just watch this…" He laughed then lurched as the orb released a shot of energy up both arms. Inara almost fell over backwards, but couldn't stop looking at the young man change in shape, elongate, his clothes taking on a peculiar darkened color. She watched as his form got taller and his hair got longer, the weird energies surging around him. He relaxed and stood straight. She looked up at him, and her mouth fell open. He nodded, "Well, will you help me?" He said in a deeper smooth voice. Inara was shocked. She looked at her Guinness and tossed the contents on the sidewalk. She shook her head and slowly sat down, "I dunno what to say, laddie. I never seen anything like this before!" She held her head in her hand, "I have a headache.. oohhh…" She didn't feel good, felt out of control. This wasn't fair! She hated when she was fucked with! She needed to lash out at the responsible party. The panther underwent the change while she fought with her thoughts.

Felicia touched her nose to Inara's arm, "Listen, young one, we do in fact need your help!" Inara looked up and around, "Who said that?" The panther looked at her straight in the eyes. A voice popped in her head, "It's me, my dear, don't be frightened, I mean you no harm!" Inara trembled, "Ok, what kind of sick joke is this…." She trailed off and remembered a legend of a dark man with an equally dark beast who were paired together to fight evil. She squinted, "Um, this may sound crazy, but I sorta believe you. There was a story passed around of a man like you who worked with a strange beast." Stealth nodded, "Well, I see my accomplishments have spread before me. I humbly ask for your help." He knelt before her. She sat, mouth wide open, "But… but I don't understand."

Stealth held her hand, "Would you like me to help complete your training? I know about the thug who murdered your parents. A kindly aunt tried to raise you, but she had to deposit you at that nice orphanage. It was a code name to protect you from his clutches. I can help you find your past, show you where your parents are, maybe help out in your quest for vengeance, if you're interested." She blanched, "My parents were MURDERED??!?!?!" She stopped and breathed deeply, "Wow, uh, I had no idea, but for some weird reason, I knew I need to train with a sword to complete some destiny I couldn't quite grasp. How is this possible? Where did you come from?" Stealth lowered his head, "Look I'll get you up to speed. You've been given the gift of telepathy with me and my partner Felicia. That's all I can share for now. I'm sorry." Inara held back tears, she was angry! How dare some motherfucker take her whole life away! Damn straight she wanted revenge! She thanked Stealth, "It's ok, m'lady, I think it was destiny we meet. Felicia urged me to take on a partner who would understand and help me." He smiled and Inara blushed, "Wow, you really are very handsome. Um, ok, I'll take a chance, but I'll cut you if you try to fuck me over, got that!?!" Stealth smiled and nodded, "Yes, you are definitely full of spunk."

The 3 disappeared into the night. Inara snuck back into her dorm room and grabbed her trunk. She pulled out a black outfit she had painstakingly put together, "I was unsure why I worked on this, but figured it might come in handy." It was wrinkled but nice material, the same material as a standard ninja outfit. Stealth inspected the material, "Nice craftsmanship!" He ran the cloth through his fingers, "What kind of sword are you trained with?" Inara stood up and quickly pulled out a custom-made long sword, "This is my weapon of choice!" Stealth stood and pulled out his ebony sword, "Then I stand by you with my sword of justice, Talembar!" She gawked, "What a beautiful sword, how did it…" the question trailed off, "Never mind…" She shook her head, "You're amazing, what other secrets do you hold?" He smiled and turned around, sheathing his sword, "You'll find out…"

Felicia bonded and assailed Inara's mind with multiple forms of swordplay, techniques not seen in hundreds of years, others yet to be invented. She swung her sword with ample dexterity, either hand as agile. "Excellent, you're ambidexterious!" Stealth commented, "Yes, it comes in handy!" She smiled, "I guess I'm not that good, am I?" Felicia looked at her with intelligent glowing lantern eyes, "Yes, you are rough, but very good for what you need. Your potential is amazing, you'll wow yourself within time, don't you fret." Was that a smile on the goofy cat's face? Inara giggled, "What's your story, kitty?" Felicia smirked, "Well, this 'kitty' came from Poland, where David hails from. We met through a gift from an unknown god and I bonded as a mother figure for him. He needs the guiding hands of a stable and strong woman to help him focus his inner fears. I can only do so much." Inara chewed on this, "Well, hmm, quite a bit to work on, but I'll try…" She smiled and relaxed. Her training would be quite the adventure in itself!


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER XII**

Inara awoke to an odd "something" prodding her cheek. She blinked and her vision fuzzed on a black shape next to her. A loud mental voice made her cringe, "It's time for your training, friend!" She shook her head and slowly got up, her vision clearing. She used the bathroom and got some training clothes on, grumbling about what time it is and why the fuck she was doing this again. She retrieved a glass of juice out of the fridge and downed it, the cold liquid felt good. After scratching an itch, she stretched and went outside, where David was sitting, meditating. Felicia followed Inara, her pace keeping consistent. The pair of trees were decorated with multiple targets and bulls-eyes. The girl eyed the targets, and saw the cute boy and remembered he was going to show her where her parents' killer was and smiled, "I think I have a crush on him!" She thought. Felicia looked at her, "Best to focus on your training, not crushes, ok?" The panther smirked, and a mental chuckle echoed through Inara's head, "Ok, I'm sorry, but he is cute!" She laughed and unsheathed her elegant sword.

David looked up, not knowing about the conversation. He had no link with Inara mentally, but he was unaware of the connection he had bonded with this new ally. Inara ruffled his hair, "How's it going, champ? Ready to teach me some new stuff?" David shook his head and looked puzzingly at Felicia. The panther merely shrugged. She approached Inara, looking up at the young woman, "Now, first begin some basic stabbing and defense moves against those targets, then later you will spar against Stealth." Inara shrugged, "Ok." She stood her ground, her feet slightly spread. The closest target sprang out and came awful fast to the girl chest, causing her to swing her sword, cutting the cardboard target in half, "Woah, wasn't expecting that!" Her heart raced for a moment, then she calmed and found her focus, "Ok, let's try another…" The next target sprang out, attempting a thigh attack. Inara swung low and lopped a third off of the target. Felicia nodded, "Ok, we'll keep this pace for a week, then move on." Inara moaned, "Ohhh…" but she complied. The week ended with the young girl exhausted, most of her muscles sore and achy. She bitched a lot but did the training the best she could. David nodded, "You're doing fine. This is just to get you to do this by instinct. Um, I've been blessed with the instincts built-in, so … uh, I don't need training, sorry…" He blushed. Inara startled to snarl, but she realized David was right, and very modest. She smiled, "Tis ok, me bucko!"

As the next few weeks blurred by, Inara noticed she was more toned, more agile and very thankful for the training! She hugged the panther, and kissed David, who blushed and held his cheek. She smiled at the two, "So, when do I spar against you, my friend?" David looked serious, "There is something I need to mention. If and maybe when we catch this killer, will you kill him? I don't think I can do it, I've been rather mixed on serving such a harsh justice on the worlds' enemies anymore." She stopped and thought, "I don't know, should I? I mean the bastard deserves it, 'tis true, but I don't know." She sighed, unsure of whether she really had the killer instincts within her. Felicia touched her hand with a black head, "If you do, it is ok. However, it is your decision, we cannot make that one for you!" Inara nodded, "Well, ok, but I admit, I feel guilty part of me wants to." She hurled her sword at the nearest tree. The blade sank in, amazing David and the cat. Felicia turned back and nodded, "True, not an easy decision for us females. We're more adept at bringing life into this world, not taking it away. I lost a kitten when I was younger and it hurt. I hunted down the poacher who killed her and looked in his eyes, and decided not to kill him. Well, I was hungry, so I tore off an arm." She stuck out her tongue. Inara laughed, "Wow, really?"

During the next 2 and a half months, Inara continued training, and melted into sparring with Stealth. Damn, he was good! She tried to counter his attacks and parry, but he had no problems being there with his gorgeous sword, blocking her every attack! "Damn! I hope this asshole's not as good as you, I'll never defeat him!" She felt down and started to cry. The panther came over, "It's ok, Inara! No man can be this fast, remember Stealth is faster than any man." Inara stopped crying and swallowed, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have cried, not very warrior-like." She blushed and lowered her gaze. Stealth sheathed his sword, "It's ok. I've cried many times thinking of my parents, and then grieved for the man who ordered their unnecessary execution! It confuses me to no end, but that's part of being human, I guess…" Inara smiled, "Boy, for a teenager, you're awfully wise." Stealth looked away, "Well, it's amazing what happens that will make you grow up faster than expected, huh?" Inara nodded, "We're kinda the same, aren't we? I mean losing our parents. You were lucky you knew them for awhile. Me I never met mine." She looked down and Stealth changed back to young David, "Yes, I'm somewhat lucky, but none of our parents should have been taken away. This is another reason I want to help. I understand your pain." He sat down and put a hand on her shoulder. She looked at him and smiled, "Yeah, you sorta do, huh?"

David smiled, "Listen, you've done enough training, and we could use a break. Why not have a nice 3-day weekend and continue on Monday?" Inara smiled, "I know a good place to get ice cream! Sorry, panthers aren't allowed!" Inara stuck out her tongue, Felicia nodded and smirked, "Well, point me in the right direction, maybe someone will donate an arm!" They all laughed until Inara wondered, "Do we taste good to you?" The panther cringed, "No, you taste awful!" She stuck her tongue out, making a gagging noise. David and Inara laughed some more. Felicia looked at the two, "You know, you make a cute couple." David quickly blushed and pulled his arm away, "Don't say that! She's too old and I doubt interested…" Inara looked at him, "Well, you're not too young, but I'd rather we stay friends, I'm sorry." David nodded, "It's ok, I'm not very loveable anyways." The girl hugged him, "Don't ever say that! Of course you are. You're very handsome and so nice. Any girl would be a fool not to see that!" She looked in his eyes, "Look, I want you to know, I do have a crush on you, but I want to keep this as friends, ok? I have my reasons, I'm sorry. I don't want you to get hurt or anything. You'll be such a heart-breaker when you get older, I know that. Now let's get some ice cream, race ya'!" She ran out of the yard, David huffing to keep up, "Not fair, you cheated!" He laughed and ran after the pretty girl. They eventually stopped in front of a nearby shop, catching their breath. They spent the afternoon, eating ice cream and filling in backgrounds, getting to know each other.

CHAPTER XIII

Stealth stood his ground and watched Inara ascend through the obstacle course. She performed forward acrobatic flips, scurried on her stomach quickly and methodically and evaded all items thrown at her, albeit a large tree trunk attached to a wire. The trap smacked her in the side, knocking her sideways. She lay for a bit, then got up and dusted off. She was bleeding and asked for a reprieve, "I'm exhausted, I'm sorry!" Felicia nodded, "It's ok, you're doing great! You're almost ready to begin the journey!" Inara beamed and went to rest and shower and tend to her wound. It was mostly splinters and a nasty gash. She cringed after applying rubbing alcohol and applied a large gauze pad. The pain subsided and she took a nap, exhausted from so many weeks of training, with sword and acrobatics.

She tossed and turned, caught in a swirling nightmare, about a man with no face taking her away from a man and woman, she cried and bawled as a baby, then escaped and grew up fast, then faced the unknown man again, as he shot the couple. She screamed and ran at the man, sword in hand, when she woke up groggy and disoriented. Her thigh was still sore and seeped a little. She winced at the pain, took some aspirin and relaxed. Stealth came in and checked on her. She looked up at him, "I guess I went and fucked up, huh? Some warrior I turned out to be…" She sighed. Stealth smiled, "You should believe in yourself, you're a damn good warrior, believe me!" She sighed again, then wondered, "I have a slim dagger for close encounters. What do you have for a close opponent when you can't use your sword?" Stealth stood up and extended an arm, a trio of serrated blades sprang out, making a SCHINK noise. Inara gulped, her eyes wide, "Fuck! Man, you are full of surprises… ouch, those look painful to look at!"

Stealth retracted the blades, and shrank down in size, leaving David in his shadow, "I turn 15 next week. I'd like to have a small party, would you be interested in attending?" Inara hugged him, then winced, "Ow! Yes!" She blushed, "Oh, sorry, it's just nice seeing you grow up, David!" They had a nice catered lunch and cake and ice cream party that next week, then resumed training. One more month, Inara thought, if I can make it that long. She tried the last set of rituals. A double somersault off of a low roof, onto a car top then land safely on the street, without raising any attention. Yes! She pulled it off! A slight disturbance in the air appeared behind her, her instincts went into high gear. She pulled out her sword and was stunned to see a shimmering shape stop and study her. The shape reblended back into black, becoming Stealth. Inara gawked, "Wha?" She stopped, "Never mind… ok, look, I know we can get some neat gadgets but I have NEVER seen that trick. It reminds me of an old movie, what was it?… oh, yea, Predator!" Stealth explained how his suit gear was extrapolated from 30th century technology and this left Inara stunned, "Wow, you got any neat gadgets for me?" She held her hand out. Stealth nodded, "Sorry, no…" He looked away and Felicia appeared, "We must be going, it is time!" She stopped and morphed into a sports car, sleek black, with stars flowing over her ebony surface. Inara approached cautiously, "This gets better and better!" She smiled, entering the car's passenger side. She was impressed with an array of touch screens, and a wide selection of touch buttons everywhere, and the most luxurious seating arrangement she had ever seen, "Wow, you ride in style!" The trio took off, leaving the ground in the night. The lights winked out, and the vehicle went into stealth mode, silent as the wind.

CHAPTER XIV

The coordinates flickered on the status screen, then highlights, several views of the local map, and various statistics highlighted the chateau. The castle was beautiful, a vague shape in the night. The sleek air car glided in quietly, landing without hardly any noise. The doors whished open silently, and two dark figures snuck out. The car melted, becoming a 4-legged beast, which quickly disappeared into the shadows. Inara had a salvaged radio set on, her only communication with Stealth. She had a mental link with Felicia as well. Stealth quietly spoke, "According to my HUD, this fellow, a Mr. Everett Washinou, is settled inside this residence, in a sub-basement, 2 levels below ground. There are 2 more levels below him, storage rooms and a multi-level garage for exotic cars. This thug leads a rich but quiet existence. Let's roll!" He disappeared into the shadows, and Inara lunged on all fours, a wild animal in appearance. She rolled quietly up to a window and peered in.

There was a security system in place, lights winking on breaker boxes with backup lights set up around the inner rooms and a few outside. She carefully examined the window sill for any traps, then cautiously stuck an arm in. Nothing happened, she waited. After a minute or so, she snuck in and kept low, looking for any staff making rounds. All clear, she slowly made her way to the elevator, constantly scanning for sensors, or any people. At the elevator, she carefully pressed the button, the door swishing open. A surprised staff person was her first victim, carefully slit in the throat, making no noise. She ignored the body and pressed the "B2" button. Muzak filled the small elevator room. She wondered where Stealth and Felicia were, but waited for the elevator to finish taking her to the level she wanted.

Stealth scanned the interior rooms, noting no personnel. He crept along the ceiling, cloaked. A startled spider ran out of his way. He mentally chuckled, the critter wasn't his target, and was ignored. He came across a set of stairs and silently opened the door to the staircase. Two uniformed staff members, nicely armed came up the flight of stairs, not even aware of the shimmering shape clinging to the ceiling. Stealth waited until they went up a flight of stairs, then crawled along the descending ceiling down to the 2nd basement level.

A large black shape slinked along the shadows, her lantern eyes and starfield surface betraying her identity. She scanned the surrounding rooms, noting no sensors or personnel. Very quiet, unusual, but not that far off. Felicia quietly loped through 6 adjacent rooms, finding a secret staircase behind a door in the last room she visited. She pawed at the door, which opened with a slight creak, then descended the spiral stairs. She scanned through 3 levels, noting a guard standing at the doorway she wanted to come out of at the 2nd basement level. The panther looked at the door, guessing a good push would knock out the guard with minimal effort. She head-butted the door, and a surprised grunt met her ears. She smirked and leaped over the fallen door, held up by an unconscious guard. She scanned and saw Stealth at one end, crawling out of the upper side of the opposite stairwell door. She sensed Inara down several rooms, an elevator door swishing open. Inara leapt into a shadow immediately. Good girl! She was getting it!

Inara swung around a corner, and right into an electric rig. She was zapped hard and fell to the floor, stunned. Two officers approached, with Everett right behind them. He smiled. This was the daughter of the couple he slaughtered so many years ago. Everett was getting on in years, but kept his physique in top shape, despite the gray temples. He thought of the day he assassinated the two bounties, wanted dead or alive. Their screams were like music to his ears! He wondered if she was alone, but no matter. He instructed the two officers to scan the garage for any allies. They trotted forward, scanning rows of exotic cars, looking for any other intruders. One of the officers fell, a large black shape rushed forward, knocking his on his back. The other officer ran and hid, signaling the hidden squad. A 2nd elevator door opened and 14 armored men entered, mostly armed with assault rifles. They opened fire on the black shape. Felicia noted Everett, holding Inara, and swaggered forward. Bullets ricocheted off her ebony sheen, her glowing eyes intent on saving her new friend! Everett wondered what the hell that thing was! He held Inara closer, threatening the shape, "Don't come any closer, or the girl gets it!" He held a shiny blade to her throat. Inara was groggy, but tried to resist and escape his hold. She was too weak from the earlier jolt. Her arms trembled and she could feel little strength in them. She gave up and closed her eyes, wondering if this was her time.

A small beam of light serrated the captor's wrist, both hand and blade clattering to the floor. A shimmering shape approached from behind and knocked Everett over, grabbing Inara as he fell. She blinked and looked up at the see through shape holding her, wondering if this was a dream. She shook her head, trying to clear the mental fog.

Felicia shrugged off the rounds, holes randomly showing up in the walls to either side of her. A single soldier got down on a knee and brought up a rocket launcher. He fired, the sound deafening. The rocket hit its target, exploded. The men waited while the smoke began clearing. The cat merely walked through the smoke, swiping at soldiers who were too close. One tried to stab her with a machete, which broke off at the point of impact. She looked at him, and her glowing eyes scared him into bolting. The others still standing ran as well, they knew they couldn't stop this juggernaut!

Stealth held down the injured man, while helping Inara up. She finally got her eyes to work, "So, it's up to you, Inara. What do you want to do with him?" She looked at him, "Well, I want to fucking kill him, but dammit, I can't, he's unarmed!" Despite the pain, Everett rolled out from under Stealth's foot and swung a hidden dagger for Inara. She clenched her teeth, her expression grim. She flung her dagger at the man, hitting him square between the eyes. Washinou's expression slackened, his eyes rolling in their sockets. He quietly fell on his back, silent forever more. Stealth looked at Inara, "Good reflexes!" He grabbed the limp man, and the 3 retreated back outside. No more staff tried to stop them, they met nobody on the way out.

On the way out of the region, Inara looked sheepish, "I shouldn't have killed him…" Felicia's kind words boomed in her head, "You did what was necessary, you defended yourself. You did it! You avenged your parents! I shall take you to their grave for a silent moment if you'd like." Inara smiled, tears in her eyes, "Yes, please!" She hugged the seat, "Thank you, Felicia, and you Dav… uh, Stealth" Stealth smiled and they landed back at the NATO headquarters, depositing the dead bounty. They left 4 surprised gentleman with a wanted fugitive and no explanation what happened to him or who did him in. They chatted for awhile, guessing it was smugglers who wanted him out of the way, but weren't sure.

Soon, Felicia arrived at a graveyard in southern Ireland, near Macroom. They wandered the massive graveyard, looking at grave after grave. Finally, Felicia motioned at a pair of gravestones, "Miles and Stephanie MacCleod" Inara looked at Stealth and Felicia, "Are these them?" Felicia looked at the two stones, "According to my records, yes…" Inara ruffled through her pocket, bringing out a note that said, "My name's 'Inara'" on it, stuffing it into the ground next to one of the stones, "So, my last name's MacCleod. I can't believe I'm here. Mom, Dad, I miss you, but if you can hear me, your deaths are for naught anymore. You should rest easy knowing I killed the horrible man who butchered you so long ago. He won't hurt anyone else ever again!" She wept silently for several moments, wiping her eyes.

She turned around, staring at Stealth, "I'd like to continue working with you, if that's ok. I have nothing here anymore. I feel better knowing my true name lineage and I consider you both excellent friends!" Felicia nodded and Stealth smiled, "Of course, we want to consider you part of the team!" The two hugged while Felicia stared at the twin gravestones, her ember eyes highlighting the rising sun.


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER XV**

6 months later, David and Inara were settling things with past bill collectors, sorting through police photos and handling miscellaneous affairs when David found Inara sitting in the corner, sighing. She was near tears for no apparent reason, "What's wrong, my friend?" David asked. Felicia padded in, just as concerned, "I sense she is missing someone, or needs someone more than a friend…" David looked at the black panther with a twinge of guilt and compassion, "Well, we have further adventures to deal with, if you want to tag along. Cheer up, my friend, we'll find out what's wrong with you and maybe someone for you." Inara stopped sobbing and smiled, "You think…?"

Felicia put a huge furry paw on her lap and hugs were passed around. David looked at Inara, "Do you need martial arts training, maybe more advanced training?" Inara looked down, embarrassed, "I'm afraid so, that last fucker got me good, I feel so clumsy sometimes!" David put a hand on her shoulder, "Look, don't be jealous of what Stealth can do, he's on our side, you HAVE to remember that!" Inara looked up and smiled, "I know…"

David blushed a bit, "You want to hear something funny?" Inara nodded, "Sure.." David whispered in her ear, "I was afraid of losing my parents, then afraid of losing all my friends. I understand you better than you understand yourself. If you think you're a freak, join the club. I'm more of a freak than YOU'LL ever be, ok?" Inara giggled, "Really?" David nodded, "Would I lie to my best friend?"

CHAPTER XVI

The next week, Inara and Stealth met in their backyard, sheltered for now, safe for now. Stealth brought out his sword of justice, Talembar, "Now, I need you to assume a standard pose, but ready, ok?" Inara nodded and spread her legs slightly, "Like this?" Stealth nodded, "Perfect!" He came at her at lightning speed and Inara closed her eyes, then slowly opened them to find a razor blade edge mere inches from her eye, "You have to protect yourself, my dear, your enemies will NOT stop until you're dead, remember that!" Inara gulped, "I wish that there were not so many evil people in the world.."

She resumed her stance and Stealth slowed down his attack, assuming various forms of Kuwu Kata, Nunti, Tonfa sparring, sword defense moves, and many more as Inara felt her strength and courage build over time. She eagerly attacked Stealth and was blocked more often than not. Her determination was a key role in how she kept up her strength, even when she longed for a lover. Felicia marked many rounds, and pointed out mistakes she made, and Inara learned a lot!

Later, Inara sat and pondered, wondering if she could capture more elaborate moves in her art, "Did you know I was an artist?" She asked David as he finished showering, "No, I didn't, are you pretty good?" Inara blushed, "Not really…" David tilted his head, "Really, I'd like see some of your art." Inara clucked, "No, you don't, it's awful. David lightly punched her arm, "Race you to the kitchen!" Inara giggled, "You're on!" and they raced down the hall, David sliding past the kitchen doorway, hitting the end of the hall with a yelp. Inara knelt over him, "You ok?" David winked, "I will be as soon as I see some of your art." Inara smiled, "Oh, ok, I'll show you some, but you'll think it's lame…"

Later, after a quick snack, David saw a few more pieces, "Well, your earlier stuff is crude, kind of like child book illustrations.." Inara pouted, "But… I admit, you're getting much better!" Inara smiled, "You think so?" She hugged him, "Thank you! This art means a lot to me…" David whispered in her ear, "Want a neat piece to sketch?" Inara blinked, "What?" David gestured with his finger, "Follow me…"

The two went out and Felicia changed into the futuristic Lambo, "Now close you eyes, don't peek!" Inara did so, "What is so damn important I can't even see it?" David didn't say a word, but drove way outside of town, towards a sea bluff. He then slowly held her hand and led her out to the edge of the bluff. He handed her a pad of paper and pencil. She bit her lip, "Can I open my eyes now?" He tugged her arm, "Any time!"

Inara opened her pretty eyes and was blown away by a huge black dragon standing mere feet in front of her! "Holy shit!" She almost fell over the ledge and David grabbed her arm, "You're not getting away that easy! Come on, let me introduce you to Felicia 2.0!" Inara could not stop looking at this fierce dragon, with green hellfire eyes, "This is Felicia? Wow, and I thought she couldn't shape-change this large!" David patted the huge dragons snout, "Well, remember those old Star Wars Clone battle cruisers?" Inara squealed "Hell yea, I fell in love with the Jedi and the clone troopers from that old show! I hope to meet my clone trooper someday!" She swooned a bit, but a friendly blast of hellfire woke her up, "Stop daydreaming, silly! You got some art to make! Yeah, Felicia can shape-change into anything down to the size of a panther or woman, and up to the size of a large republic battleship, but she loses about 1-2% of her strength and integrity and who needs to give those slight odds to an enemy?"

Inara laughed, "True that! Yeah, let me get my head together. Felicia, my darling art subject, show me the fiercest look you can muster!" Soon, Felicia was belching 10,000 degree plus fire safely into the sky. Inara was a little puzzled after making a new sketch, "How is she able to make the atmosphere bend like that?" Inara pointed at the odd effect in the sky, the hellfire reaching nearly into orbit. David winked, "Oh, didn't you know, Felicia here is powered by a green g-type star?" Inara chuckled, "You're shitting me right? Come on, a star is fucking HUGE!" David smiled, "You ever kissed the sun? I mean for real?" Inara sat down, stunned, "… so, you're telling me she has the power of a sun running her?" This took a bit and David thought Inara was going into shock, "Um, so, for real? Like the sun earth is warmed by? How? I mean, what the fuck?"

David sat down next to her, "I cannot explain all this, I only know what Felicia tells me, ok? Please trust her, know she would NEVER harm you, she's got your back, like I do!" Inara stared at David like he was nuts, "Wow, sometimes you scare me…" David chuckled, "That's the spirit!"

CHAPTER XVII

After that interesting ordeal, as Inara called it, she needed a much needed break and went to Scotland to visit an aunt, her aunt Diotta. She was rather mean and crude, but meant well. She sort of knew Inara's parents and kept to herself more than ever in these dark days since their death. She barely noticed David. Felicia stayed in car mode, which didn't impress Diotta much. She clucked her tongue, "What a dumb looking car! Did you pick that up at the local dealership, rent it or is it a wreck from the landfill?" Felicia snarled a little, upsetting Diotta, "What was that?" She merely shook her head and showed Inara some old photos of her parents, before she was born.

Inara pored through photo album after photo album. Her aunt did not believe in digital photos, said they were too easy to lose. Inara cried a little seeing her mom, who looked just like her, "Wow, I wish they were still alive, I miss them so badly!" David placed a hand on her shoulder, "Yeah, I know, I wish my parents were alive too…" He started to tear a little but held on for her sake and to keep from embarrassing her in front of her aunt. Inara stood up and looked at her aunt, "Are there any other photos?" Her aunt shrugged, "No, afraid not. You'd be best to forget your parents, they weren't very good to you, hell, they abandoned you, didn't you know?"

Inara snarled, "DON'T YOU EVER SAY THAT ABOUT MY PARENTS, YOU FUCKING BITCH!" and came at her aunt with a knife she had in her pocket. Her aunt held her hands up, "What are you going to kill me, too? Typical brutal amazon. I even destroyed a treasure art collection you had inherited from them and several collectible dragon figurines. Those are childs' toys!" Inara wanted to claw her aunt's eyes out, but David held her back, "I think we better leave…"

CHAPTER XVIII

Their next stop was southern Hellanic Republic, near Albania, on the western border. The ocean was chilly this time of year, the sea gulls noisy as usual. Inara knelt near the port edge, "Wow, she can be a bitch huh?" Referring to her aunt, "I don't feel like traveling much, sorry…" David sat next to her, "Tis ok, she's misguided, she doesn't know what happened back then.." Inara hugged him, crying a little, "Thanks for keeping me from stabbing her, I wanted to so badly, but you stopped me…"

David patted her back, "Yeah, she might have more answers later, I can't say. You ready to move on? I know of a ship that might take us farther south. I heard about a group of pirates on the salty sea and I need a new direction in my life as well…" Inara chuckled, "You? really?" He winked, "Race you to the boat!" Inara ran after, "Hey, no fair!"

They got on the boat, with Felicia disguised as a tied down car, ever elegant with the star field crossing her surface. A confused sailor asked, "What kind of paintjob did you have put on this car? Never seen anything like it…" David chuckled a little, "It's a custom job, VERY expensive." The sailor shrugged his shoulders, "Kids and their hot rods…" and wandered away, muttering some more.

While on the ship, they surfed the web and she stumbled across another aunt, aunt Ashton. It had to be a nickname, but she knew about a legendary sniper from the African army who happened to fall down in combat and needed assistance. He was an elegant captain of his elite group and prided himself on bringing death ¼ of a mile at a time. Inara sighed, "He sounds hunky!" She read more and e-mailed her aunt, who provided a few links she could check up. An old myspace page came up, recently expired, the account closed, but the name "Eldarin" lingered in the software code. She puzzled "Eldarin? Why does that name sound familiar?" She did some more searching on Google V. 10.2 and found out his real name "Darin Hickey". She searched more thinking, "I have to find him, he's my true love!"


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER XIX**

David and Inara went out the deck to talk some more. Inara looked out at the sea, still daydreaming, "I had a dream last night, that a tall slim man with glasses was approaching me and I was trying to get him to come to bed with me and he was kinda reluctant. Is this weird?" David thought for a moment, "I'm not sure. We could ask Felicia later, maybe she can help."

Inara hugged David, "Oh, thanks I keep forgetting how smart you guys are!" The two looked out some more at the sea, the waves churning in a light ocean storm. Inara stared really hard into the distance, "You think he's out there? My guy…" David smiled, but didn't know what to say. Inara didn't notice he was quiet, she kept staring as David quietly left the deck, heading for car storage.

Upon meeting the steward and asking for fake information, he headed down and found a bored Felicia, "Oh, it's about time you found me, honey, I almost fell asleep waiting for a mouse to set off a trap I made!" David chuckled a bit, "That bored eh?" Felicia became serious, "So what's your problem? How can I help?" David mentioned some of the questions, concerns and dreams Inara had about her prospective lover, "Is she that serious? What if he's not it?" David frowned, "But what if he is? We can't keep them apart, at least we can find out, never hurts to ask." Felicia mentally scoffed, "He's liable to have several ladies waiting for him!" but said no more as David frowned and headed back to his room to contemplate this and more.

CHAPTER XX

The ship met no pirates, like Felicia was informed via long-wave radio. David didn't even notice the quiet seas as he thought about what the car and Inara shared with him. He realized something he never addressed, he was almost 18 and never had a girlfriend himself. Should he be himself more often and try to win a girl? Should he assume the Stealth persona and ask an older woman out? Would Felicia be ok with any of this? All this churned in his normal brain, without the help and hindrance of telepathy and world-wide web knowledge.

He fell asleep and didn't notice the same pirates that were no longer a threat appear and storm the ship. Inara noticed some funny activity and leapt off-ship to handle the threat. She handled a few pirates, Chinese rogue communists part of a larger community of the leftist Chinese mob, part hippy, part ninja, very ironic indeed! What had started as a group of Greenpeace extremists turned into bloody battles and confused leadership. What remained was a mix of liberal animal lovers and part thieves. Inara stood her ground and faced off 4 opponents at once. She used her knife to cut a thief in the face while two more jumped her from behind. She screamed as they hauled her away.

A large explosion hit near the storage level and a pair of headlights woke up. Felicia was awakened and sensed danger nearby. She morphed into large panther mode and leaped through the splintered metal and wood with nary a scratch on her. Three bomb specialists were cleaning up, looking for loot when a large glossy animal jumped them, taking out their cluster. Gun shots went off and all when silent, then a lone cat lumbered out with 3 hostages safely returned to their ship.

David groggily woke up and came out to see what was going on! He almost took the form of Stealth but didn't need to, Inara with Felicia's help saved the day. The captain of the ship caught a slim glance of a wild cat leaping off ship, unsure what he saw. He rescued and talked to Inara about what happened. She wasn't sure, but assured them the captain and all in command of the pirate were taken care of. The Captain then had the pirate ship secured for depositing at the next port where the port police could take care of them.

The ships report left a few missing pieces of cargo, a black exotic car, some luggage, several safes full of money, credit chips and various treasures were missing but returned, only the 2 safes and exotic car were never found. David feared Felicia was gone for good! He pouted while Inara told him, "She'll be back, she had to hide for awhile!" He didn't believe her, he was lost without her!

CHAPTER XXI

At the next port, the port of Nigera, was the ships next stop. The couple left the ship with little luggage left. David hailed a taxi and they rented 2 single rooms, so David could think alone, the first time in years. He was very depressed and Inara didn't know what to say or do. She kept thinking of her lover out, damaged in war, his family must miss him. If she could help him, them maybe he'd fall for her, maybe her dreams might tell her something. Now, she had to help David out, help him locate Felicia.

It was New Years 2058, and David didn't feel like celebrating. Neither did Inara, she stayed with David, holding his hand, telling him things would work out. She reminded him that even if Felicia was a panther once more, that "time would tell" about how she felt about him. He expressed how lonely he was, never having the time to find a special woman. Inara felt guilty but couldn't help him, "Sorry, you're not exactly my type, kid." This didn't help, but time alone did.

A few days later, Inara caught more news of the web, good news about Captain Hickey! David rushed to see what she was blabbering about and was giddy for her as well. This was great news. He was married at the tender age of 24, but his wife died in a bloody battle and he was alone! She needed to find him and ask if she could help him out. David shook his head, "Well, without Felicia, good luck. I cannot do anything more than ask the local military where he might be located." And David left Inara at the motel. Inara cried herself to sleep, lonely without his help or Felicia's.

CHAPTER XXII

David wandered the streets alone, not sure where his orb was, not caring anymore. He thought about hitting a local bar and looking for a cheap lay, but couldn't see himself doing it. He sensed Felicia was still out there somewhere, she had to be! He eventually wandered out to the beach and was kicking rocks around when he heard a voice, "David, where are you?" David looked up, his eyes wide! He heard that voice before, but it sounded distant. He looked around the docks and along the beach and no sign of the panther or the orb. He started to head back to town when a black melted shape caught his eye. It might be Felicia! He ran to the source of the voice he heard and found parts of a charred vehicle strewn underneath a bridge.

Felicia had nearly overloaded and her circuits were confused. She leapt overboard due to acid damage and her shielding almost collapsed! She realized she had foolishly tried to save Inara and almost paid the price herself. What became a weak spot in her armor reformed and healed over time. She pulled herself slowly up onto the sand, underneath the bridge more, into the shadow. Her green hellfire eyes smoked and sizzled a bit as water was sloshed out, making David worry more about her. He was afraid to touch her, she was twitching and changing shape constantly, but she was able to communicate telepathically with him no problem and told him so, "Don't worry about me, Inwe needs your help!" David stood there with his mouth half open, "How am I supposed to help her without Stealth? Where did my orb go?" Felicia glitched twice and a black ball fell out, rolling down the sand. David scooped it up, "Thanks!" and gently kissed her.

He quickly ran back to the motel, but Inara was gone already. David panicked but hid in an alley as he let the change happen. It was getting dark, so he used what information he could salvage and headed south, letting Felicia handle herself. Stealth leaped from building top to building top, hunting for Inara.

CHAPTER XXIII

Inara was heading out of town in another taxi cab when she was rudely robbed. The taxi driver was not who he said he was! He was in for a rude awakening dealing with Inara. She dealt him a severe blow, crippling him and left the taxi still running. She was startled when a shimmering shape appeared out of nowhere! She tried to focus in the dark, "Who's there?" and Stealth turned off his light-bending mode and appeared out of the shadows, "Faith and Begorrah, ye scared the crap out of me, you did!" She ran up and hugged the large man, almost in tears again, "Dammit, fucking taxi driver tried to rob me, in his own goddamn taxi, no less!" Stealth laughed, "Well, he won't be doing that again, will he?" Inara shook her head, "No, I don't think so…"

The two headed south, towards eastern Cameroon. Stealth changed back and put the orb back in his backpack while Inara hailed another taxi, "I'm running short on money here, you got $200?" David checked his wallet, "Nope, sorry…" and they decided to walk for awhile. Inara stared back at him, "Where is Felicia, did you find her?" David smiled, "Yeah, she's fine… or will be soon." Inara left that unanswered as they crossed the border, finally hitching a ride on the back of a mule truck.

While traveling in southern Cameroon, they stumbled across a short-term job, sending a package to a hidden location. Stealth took the package carefully, "Wonder what it is?" Inara shrugged, "Doesn't matter, let's deliver it and get our money!" No sooner had she said that, when the package exploded, sending both people off the road, onto the sidewalk. A nearby shop clerk wandered out, talking in Portugese, muttering something Inara couldn't understand. It didn't help the blast half-deafened her, she was wandering in shock for a moment. A pair of large hands grabbed her and steadied her. She looked mutely up at a large dark stranger with soot all over his black suit. It was Stealth! She cleared her eyes and he was gone! She shook her head as the ringing settled down and was pissed she might not get her money.

CHAPTER XXIV

She found David walking out of a market place, some money in his hand, "So, you're making money anyways, eh?" He smiled, "Yep, got some local money helping out a farmer with his goats." Inara laughed, "You're quite the charmer, you are." They wandered south of town, and flagged another taxi down. This time they headed out of southern Cameroon, eastward to Chad, Africa. Here they entered a seedy cantina, full of underworld crooks and riff-raff. David approached the desk, "Got internet here?" He asked in Swahili. The bartender nodded and said something unintelligible. Inara nodded, "What did he say?"

David pointed at a terminal, "He said they have wireless DSL, over here…" and sat down at the free terminal. Inara had him search for a Captain Darin Hickey and no luck. After 4 searches, a Commander Darin Hickey was registered in a hospital over in eastern Africa this afternoon. He was honorably discharged and gained rank at the same time!

Inara squealed, "Well, let's go, I have a man to win over!" David chuckled and thanked the bartender, dropping a $20 dollar local coin for his trouble. The bartender shrugged, grabbed the coin and went back to making another drink.

They hitched another ride with a rental truck to eastern Africa, to the country most likely by the internet listing search, Eastern Cape. He was either checked in at the town of Queenstown or East London. They checked the military hospital at East London, with no luck and tried Queenstown and found a Darin Hickey there, with chest injuries. He was being hypo-scanned for internal bleeding, but recovering ok. He had 1 visitor, a brother. Inara wondered how she could visit him, so lied and said she was his girlfriend and it worked! Inara calmly introduced herself to a dazed and drugged Commander Hickey, Australian defense corps, stationed in Africa. He didn't notice her standing there, until she cleared her throat and said Hi. He blinked his blue eyes and looked at her, slowly taking in her nice slim athletic body, "Who-who are you?" he mumbled.

Inara stumbled and twiddled with her hair, "Look you don't know me, but I had a dream about you. My name's Inara!" She smiled and he was taken by cupid's arrow! He coughed and a heart's shape appeared on his bandaged chest, just below his heart. Inara choked and ran to see the nurse. They came back with some syringes and clean up towels, only to find him asleep. The nurse shooed Inara out, "You'll have to leave, visiting hours are over, sorry."


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER XXV**

Inara was upset, why did fate torture her? She tried so hard, and yet. David saw her sitting at the steps to the hospital, "What's wrong? Aren't you happy yet?" Inara looked up at him, "Can you help me? I can't figure out, am I pretty?" David looked at her, serious for a moment, "Well, honestly…. Well, yeah! You're very cute and way sexy, why?"

Inara felt a little better, "Thanks! You know, you're still cute yourself. Do you think he will ever fall for me?" David looked away, "Yeah… yes, I think he will. I'll try to help, ok? I promise!" Inara stood up and hugged him, "Thanks my friend, you're the best!" David still worried about poor Felicia, was she in pain? Tortured without him? He wondered how she could be messed up like that since he assumed she was invincible. It didn't make any sense, but that was for later. He looked back at his new friend and hugged her tighter, "Let's go find a hotel room and try again tomorrow. I wonder if we can…"

They checked into a hotel across town. Many assumed they were a couple, a cute one at that. The stares frightened Inara, but merely amused David, he was deep in thought. He showered while Inara stared out the window, wondering if she would dream of her hunky new husband. She didn't notice David sneak up behind her and playfully snap her cute ass with a wet towel. Inara yipped and chased him around the room, vowing vengeance. David stopped, out of breath, "Don't worry, he'll fall for you, and you'll marry him, but now, we have a mission. We'll stop by and visit him again, and I MUST take care of Felicia, ok? She needs me!" Inara gulped, "Is it that bad?" She looked out there, "Where is she?"

CHAPTER XXVI

Inara dreamed of a green lush field, her parents' cottage. She was a little girl, unable to run away from a dark presence, her parents gone! She saw a slim stranger in the forest, and ran towards him. She screamed out his name, "El Darin" when she woke up. She was covered in sweat, those damn dreams scared her! She looked over and David was silently asleep, on his side. She came over and ran a finger over his hair, "He's so sweet and angelic. Wow, to watch your parents murdered right before your eyes, harsh!" She smiled and left the room early. It was 4:30 am local time, the sun wasn't quite up yet. She wanted to see her lover NOW and couldn't wait!

A weird warbled voice hit her in the brain, "He needs you now!" and Inara jumped, wondering if David said that. He was still asleep and she leaned out the window, cocking an ear, unable to discern where it came from. She almost fell out when a new voice, his, she assumed chimed up, "Where are you, my dear? I miss you, come to me, please, I need you!" Inara heard enough!! She leaped out of the window, down 4 stories to the ground, startling a pair of joggers. Damn! She needed some of the marvelous toys Stealth had! She was mad at Felicia but considered her an aunt, as weird as that sounded for a wild beast.

Inara ran across, hopping from behind trees until she cleared the 8 blocks to get behind the hospital. She slowly and cautiously approached the rear entrance and lucked out. A janitor opened a rear door and she almost ran into him as she snuck in. Her heart racing, she leaped up several flights of steps, remembering he was in 302. She almost passed level 3 and giggled, "Oops!"

She became a little paranoid, hoping military guards weren't posted, since he was a famous sniper. She nearly stabbed a nurse and the nurse ran to sound off an alarm. Inara hogtied her and muffled her cries, "Shhh, I'm only hear for true love, understand? I don't want to harm you or cause any trouble. How do I get in to see Commander Hickey?" The nurse mumbled something, so Inara slowly removed her gag, "H-h-he's only being watched by one guard. Do you know him?" Inara rolled his eyes, "Only from a dream…" The nurse clucked her tongue, but tilted her head, "Well, good luck, dear woman. I can tell you he needs a woman. He screams out someone named "Inara" in his sleep. Does that ring a bell?" Inara's eyes got wide, "He wants me!!" and ran off, leaving a confused and tied nurse.

CHAPTER XXVII

David awoke later, about 8:30 am and was alarmed to find Inara gone, "Aw, fuck, now where did she go?" He was ready to go after her, but a new instinct kicked in, to use the orb, accept the change and come to rescue Felicia! He bolted out of the window and cloaked on the fly, confusing several sea gulls who almost ran into his leaping form. He clung to a building side, then leaped up and over a second building. His senses told him to head towards the beach, so he followed them! He scanned the beachfront, when the police almost noticed him. They seemed to half ignore him, the man who wasn't there. He slowly cautiously listened for new instincts when he tripped over a half-melted mess, part car, part panther, hiding behind a pair of cragged rocks towards the edge of beach, where the water splashed.

He uncloaked and let the change drain out of him. Felicia twitched and shorted, and David ran to her, hugging her black form, "Are you ok? What happened?" She looked at him, sort of changing into a black women with green hellfire eyes, a voice whispering in the breeze, "I'm … um, I'm embarrassed you had to see that, little one. I'm afraid I'm not as invincible as you would believe me to be. I'm so sorry!" She looked down and cried, he thought, or maybe she was dripping, couldn't tell. He crouched in front of her, "What? No.. um, just tell me what happened, I won't leave you. I can't!"

Felicia relayed via telepathy what happened on the pirate ship, the boat they were on, the whole story. A kid and his parents wondered who the funny kid and strangely wrapped lady were, but they ignored them in time. A dog wandered by and Felicia snarled at it, scaring it away. She looked back at David, "Are you still ok with me? I'm a wild beast underneath, you realize. You must find a woman, young David, not me. I'm not even human…I'm a freak…" and she "cried" more, and David reached over and hugged her, "Listen, ever since I saw you in that zoo, I noticed how pretty you were. Remember that?" Felicia looked out, "Maybe, but still I can't bear children, the zoo sterilized me, I'm sorry David. I'd hate to say it, but our children would be worse freaks than you and I are put together." David giggled and Felicia pouted, "What?"

David smiled, "Listen to yourself, you sound like a worried mom, hehe.. I don't care what Inara says, what the world says, I love you, Felicia, you rescued me from a fate worse than death, ok? Never forget that!" Felicia looked down, her eyes glowing green, startling a crab that wandered by, "I guess I'm being foolish huh? Do you see me as a panther or a sheep? Be honest!"

David looked out at the sea, "Well, I'm more of a sheep than you are, dear pantheress. I need your help, your information in my head, your song is my path, my destiny, and I like it. You've been paired with me for whatever reason, and let's go with it, ok? We need each other, simply put. You are beautiful but mysterious, and I'm the tall strong one. Shall we continue?" Felicia licked his face, "Sorry…" and she mentally giggled, "That was rather unladylike…"

**CHAPTER XXVIII**

Inara knocked the military guard out and stood by Darin's bed, the life support quietly humming, keeping him alive. She held his hand, a stout woman almost in tears, tears of joy. He loved her and dreamed about her! She felt her heart race, her eyes dilate, she was in love over and over with him! He was her Jedi, her clone trooper, her personal honor guard.

She stood there quietly, sighing a lot as he slowly woke up, the medicines wearing off. He almost rang the nurse's bell when she grabbed his hand, "I'm Inara, I dreamed about you…" He slowly removed his hand but was unable to say anything, at first. He looked up and down at her and he got a little erect. She blushed, "Did you really call out my name in your sleep?"

Darin didn't say a word and Inara started doubting herself when he motioned for a glass of water. She happily gave him a small drink and he cleared his throat, "Sorry, dry throat…. Um, yes, are you really Inara? I saw a small child in my dream, followed by a dark presence and she was running to me and then disappeared. I wanted to hug her and tell her everything was ok… where am I? I don't recognize this place!"

Inara looked around, "Um, why are you here? Didn't you serve in the military, Commander Hickey?" Darin cringed, "Please, don't call me Hickey… I hate that name… wait, did you call me Commander? I don't remember going up a rank. I was Captain for a year or so… I'm confused, can you tell me what happened, what is happening?"

Inara looked around, "I-I-I don't know, sorry. All I know is that I dreamed of you and I'm sorry if I took you from a woman and I will leave you alone…" She started to leave the room when a second nurse ran in and the guard came to. They almost handcuffed her when Darin spoke up, "No, wait, I think she's Inara, the girl of my dreams… please give us some time alone…"

The armed guard and nurse slowly left after the nurse checked his stats, "You can stay for 15 minutes, sorry…." And left. The woman named Inara watched the nurse leave and she ran to her guy, almost jumping on him, "I'm sorry I scared you. I just wanted to meet you and I did, right? You're not mad, are you?" She blushed again and Darin adjusted himself, getting more comfortable, "Anyone ever tell you how beautiful you are? You're like an angel!"

She gaped, "What? Um, no… my parents left me at a orphanage and nobody ever told me… you think so?" She was wet and couldn't stop thinking how horny she was getting. She never dated growing up or had a crush on anybody, the closest was poor David, since they both lost their parents. He motioned for her, "Before you leave, open my supply bag, I may have something of yours."

She nodded, owl eyes, "Huh?" and opened the closet where a supply bag was sitting. There was an unassembled sniper rifle, unloaded and stable, and nothing else, "What are you talking about? What is it you have of mine?" and he cleared his throat, "Sorry, there is a second supply bag hiding behind that one. Yeah, that one…" As she picked up a second bag. Inara opened the bag and was shocked! She pulled out the pieces of a long bow, "Where did you get this? Why does it look so familiar?"

Darin sat up, "My uncle was part of a gang in Belgium and wound up filching a bounty on a couple. He never told me who they were, and he stole that bow. It was supposed to be your 5th birthday gift, for when you got older. Do you know how to use one?"

Inara assembled some exploding arrows, "Yeah, I trained myself how to use one. This isn't composite, is it? I hate composite bows!" Darin chuckled, "No, I don't think so, it's solid wood with a special string, made from goat hair and something else mixed together. It's tougher than nylon and more natural, like nature intended." Inara smiled, "You read my mind!"

Darin coughed and Inara freaked a little, "You ok?" His wound was bleeding again but he asked a request, "Can you shoot the bow. I had a dream about a woman in black firing a long bow at a target. Please show me how you use it, please…" Inara thought about this, "Well, I haven't used one in years, but… ok…" and cocked an arrow. She fired at the wall, driving the arrowhead through the wall and into the hallway outside, scaring the nurse outside. The nurse and guard ran in, ready to arrest her again. Darin waved them away, even though the nurse said her time was up. He smiled, "I'm sorry, sweet and pretty dream girl. Promise I can visit you when I leave the hospital? …. And thanks!" and he fell asleep as more pain killers were administered. Inara left the hospital peacefully, quietly.

The guard saw her to the front entrance and chuckled, "I knew Commander Hickey for 4 years and he always talked about some young girl in his dreams. I thought the fucker was a pedophile! Are you really her?" Inara looked at him, "Maybe…. I don't know…" and slowly walked away. The guard blushed, thinking that lucky fucker Hickey, he snags the hottest girls!


	7. Chapter 7

**CHAPTER XXIX**

The dreams wouldn't stop haunting her! She dreamed he was calling for her, but she couldn't reach him. She saw his face and then she woke up, in a pool of sweat. Inara fell out of bed, badly disoriented and confused. She lay for mere moments, then wondered why she was bothering, "I don't get it! What do these dreams mean?"

David leaned over, "You ok?" and Inara slowly got up, "Sorry, I had a bad dream…" David patted her on the shoulder, "You want to talk about it?" Inara smiled, "I'm ok, but thanks!" and David went back to sleep. Inara sat and thought about her destiny. She was hoping that Stealth and Felicia could help her when she fell asleep again, dreaming lazily about clouds and horses.

The next morning, Inara woke up and heard a knock on the door. She got dressed and ran to the door, hoping that Darin would be standing there. She was let down by an armed guard with a message, "He left this for you, are you Inara?" She nodded and he handed her a small videodisc.

She placed the videodisc into the newer computer that came with the room. It woke up and a small map was displayed. She squinted at the display, it was kind of dark. She looked up and noticed her stomach growling. She paused the map and it froze while she got a snack. A few glazed donuts and some milk hit the spot. She returned and tried to access the message. It merely read, "Had to be transferred to another hospital, needed major surgery, sorry." And that was it! She reread the message and looked at the map. It pointed to a hospital in Algeria, back where she and David came to Northern Africa, "What the fuck? Where are you, Darin?"

CHAPTER XXX

David came back from a phone call when Inara burst out of the hotel room, "I got a message from him, but I need your help!" David followed her back to their room. She pointed at the map and the message, "Any ideas?" David looked out the window, "Hmm, if Felicia was better, she could help… um, maybe we should backtrack, and let Felicia heal. You think she'll be ok without me? Inara shrugged, "I don't know, David… I'm sorry. Is she ok?" She tilted her head, the sign of a good friend! David looked down, nearly in tears, "I don't know. She said she was ok for now, but she was badly damaged, I think…"

Inara touched his arm, "Well, maybe she'll be ok later. I'm really sorry I can't help. I can't even take care of my own love life, I'm a failure…" and slumped down, almost crying herself. David sat down next to her, "No, please, don't say that. You're fine, it's NOT your fault. Maybe she's testing us. Come on, let's find your guy and then Felicia next, ok? Will you help?" Inara looked up and smiled, "Thank you!" and hugged him even harder.

David got on the internet, "Well, first we track down Darin's family, maybe they can help!" Inara smiled, "I hope Felicia's ok, she needs you as badly as you need her." David smiled, "Yeah… come on, let's forget her. She'll be fine, like you said. We have a commander to find for my prettiest friend!" Inara beamed, "Awww.. you" and tickled his neck. David got aroused for a moment but continued looking on the net for the family with the name Hickey.

CHAPTER XXXI

The search was rather fruitless for hours, then they found an interesting site. It mentioned a top secret project but access was limited to civilians. Could Hickey be involved in that? What was so important that only he and a few select had access? Inara and David looked at each other, puzzled, "Man, this would be a lot easier if Felicia was here and accept her destiny at my side." David was sad for a moment, "Inara, I'm sorry, I'm having trouble functioning without her, she's my … well, my everything. Can I take a break?"

Inara smiled, "Sure… you've helped so much. Want to get some lunch? I saw a cool retro restaurant down the street." David smiled, "Yeah, I'm kinda hungry. I wonder how much it costs to eat there?" Inara shrugged, "Dunno, want to rob someone and find out?" David chuckled, "haha, you're very funny… well, if I can get access to a secret back account Felicia once told me my parents opened for me, it might help…"

David jumped from site to site and finally ended up at a bank site, Bank of Poland. He entered some numbers, seemingly random and then a new page popped up. David and Inara sat there with their mouths open. They looked at each other, "Is this right?" wondered David. The page stated the account was sitting at $19,987,451.31 USD. Inara gulped, "David, you're rich, why didn't you know this?"

He looked back, "I…I don't know. My parents never mentioned this. I wonder how this much money ended up in a secret account?" Inara poked him on the arm, "Can you pull out $100 so we can get something to eat?" David blinked, "I guess so. Hold on…" and inserted a credit chip. $100 was transferred to the chip and converted to 73 Samolian dollars automatically. They left the room and ate nicely at the restaurant. Inara had a cheeseburger and David ordered a chicken sandwich and they shared some fries and sodas. They laughed about funny stories they thought of and really had some fun together. Inara looked at David, "I'm really glad we met. It's like we've known each other forever. You want to be my best friend, my secret friend?" David blushed, "awww… sure!" and they hugged.

CHAPTER XXXII

Later that day, David sat, meditating. Inara interrupted him, "Can you teach me some more of your kung-fu? I'm a little rusty, I guess…" David thought for a moment, "I never took kung-fu myself, my balance is shot. Stealth is the kung-fu master here, sorry." Inara looked at him, "You want to train with me then, maybe meditate, try a few basic moves. I'm sure you remember a few from what Stealth gives you."

David smiled, "Well, I'll try, if not for me so much, but to see you become natural at it, ok?" Inara smiled as well, "Thanks!" and slugged him lightly. They went out for a walk, finding a small park to practice alone. The weather was perfect, not a cloud in the sky. Inara sat down for a moment, "Well, I did train for a little bit as a child with a Tao monk. He taught me how to breathe properly and stretch before beginning even the most basic of moves."

David sat down next to her. He tried to sit Indian-style and finally folded his legs right. Inara giggled, "Ok, now breathe in and out… like this.." She closed her eyes and chanted slowly to herself, letting the ambient sounds of the ocean keep her thoughts at peace. David did the same. Several kids ran by, screaming and yelling, having fun. David kept getting distracted, "We might have to go somewhere else…" Inara chanted a little more, "Soon, just shut out all the noises around you." David tried but thoughts of Felicia floated in his head. He tried a new strategy, use her positive energy, her Chi, and make that a happy place. It almost worked until several thugs ran by, and one tried to rob David as he sat there, meditating!

Inara snapped out of it and kicked the first thug in the head, sending him rolling away a little. The other two punks tried to point a gun and held a switchblade to David's throat, "Gimme your money, bitch, or the kid dies!" She studied the two and a quick movement made one land to the ground, bleeding from the stomach. The other shot at her, but missed, she leaped at him and knocked him to the ground. The two wrestled and she head-butted him! David watched as Inara stood up, a little bruised and battered, but ok, "Um, I guess you're right! We better do this somewhere else…" and walked away, leaving David staring at the bleeding thug. He soon ran after Inara, "How did you do that? You don't need my help!"

She winked, "Who said I was helpless?" and walked three more blocks to a dance studio, "How about I teach you some moves, ok?" She talked to the lady sitting in the studio, "You ok with us renting this room for meditation and martial arts training?" David handed her $50 and she nodded, "Sure, why not? Business is slow today…" and she left, "You can have the room for the rest of the afternoon." And walked out.

CHAPTER XXXIII

Inara and David resumed meditating for 30 minutes, then stetched for 15 more. They limbered up and Inara stood firm, her legs slightly spread, "Ok, David, try the same move Stealth taught me back in Ireland, ok?" David shrugged, "Oh… ok…" and came her slowly, and cautiously. She quickly grabbed his arm and sent him to the floor, "You're not even trying! You have to attack me, not ask me for a date!" David tried to move, but couldn't, "I was trying to attack you! I told you I suck at this…"

Inara got up and helped him up, "Sorry, I forgot you're not Stealth. Let's try something more basic, shall we?" The two kid-slapped each other, getting into the rhythm of basic fighting moves. Inara chided him, but took him seriously, "See boxing and kids play are good ways to improve your balance and coordination. Now, try to block this!" and she swung at him. He tried to block, but she feigned left and slugged him on the other shoulder, "Sorry, that was kinda cheating. Let's try again, but slower, ok?"

The shared common fighting moves for the rest of the afternoon, Inara punching and swatting, while David defended himself. Later, they exchanged roles, David swatting and punching, and Inara fought off his attack moves. Inara noted he was getting a little better, but had relied on his parents and even Stealth and Felicia to fight for him, "You may need to rely on yourself, like I had to growing up. Your parents are gone, David, I'm sorry!" David stopped, "Why do I have to do this? Can't I think my way out of a jam?" Inara popped him on the face, leaving a bruise, "Oh, David, I'm sorry… see this is way you need to defend yourself. You're a strong person, don't back down to bullies, ok? I mean this, as a friend. If I fall and you're alone, no one will protect you. You must defend yourself and attack back. Does this make sense?"

David looked down, "I'm too weak and I'm so exhausted. Can we stop and try again later?" Inara nodded, "Yes, of course, I'm sorry. I was just trying to help. You will need to do this, I'm sorry. The world is cruel, I found that out growing up, but I can help you, if you'll accept my help." They hugged and left the room, turning off the lights.


	8. Chapter 8

**CHAPTER XXXIV**

They trained for another week, before grabbing their meager belonging and checking out the motel in Queenstown. Inara was eager to head back north to Algeria, to find Darin again. David worried more about Felicia, but heard nothing from her. He pouted but dutifully kept his training up, a good warrior mindset forming and making Inara proud!

After a week on the road, they decided to take a flight instead of risking another encounter with a pirate ship. The plane took them back to Algeria and they landed near midnight, local time. David was sleepy and Inara was wound up, the thoughts of marrying the hunky commander still boiling in her head. She was bouncing and almost drank too much coffee, before the last cup jittered out of her hand. David woke up at the sound of splashing liquid, hitting the floor, "Sorry… I'm really nervous!" David chuckled, "Just breathe ok? He likes you, right? No, I bet he loves you, I can see it in your face."

Inara looked at him, "What do you dream about?" David frowned, "Not much lately, the images are broken up, kinda fuzzy…" He stood up, "We better get going, ok?" He held out his hand, to show her his strength and trust in her judgment, "Thanks!" she blushed and they hailed a taxi, looking for the nearest military hospital. The taxi took them to a local base, newly built, by the newly allied Australian-American embassy. It was called the New Venture Memorial Hospital.

David laughed really loud, "That's an odd name for a hospital!" Inara sighed, "It may be a sign. I've been seeing them everywhere…" and she walked up to the admission desk. She asked about where a Commander Hickey was at. The front nurse asked who she was. Inara fibbed, "I'm his girlfriend and this is my friend… uh, Wayne.." The two head nurses looked at each other and shrugged, "We need ID, lady… sorry.."

David remembered a Polish military ID he had kept all these years, his dad's, "Um, this is kinda old, but my Name is John Wayne Freeman. I'm a scientist from Poland, here on a top-secret mission. I'm sorry my ID is old, but it should check out." The nurse ran it through a scanner. It was indeed old, about 20 years old, but checked out. She cocked an eyebrow at him, "How old are you, kid?" David stammered for a bit, looking at Inara, "I'm … um, 42.. I had some top secret surgery done on me to make me look younger, it seems to have worked. I fooled you, didn't I?"

The nurse looked at the picture on the ID. It did look like this kid, but much older, "You got a second ID, a civilian ID to compare this with?" David almost ran out of ideas and wanted to leave when a guard came in, "Hey, Inara, how are you? Have you found your guy yet?" The nurse looked at the guard, "Do you know these people?" The guard smiled, "Yeah, lady, this is Commander Darin Hickey's girlfriend. I met her back in Somalia. She wanted to talk to her guy then. You giving her a hard time?"

The nurse reluctantly let them through. Inara kept staring at the strange guard, not sure who he was. He winked, "It's ok, Inara, I know Darin personally. He told me of the odd dreams he had of you. I knew the other guard who escorted you out last time. I want my best pal to be happy, so I figured I owed him one. He saved my life in the battlefield. He's a fucking hero!!"

**CHAPTER XXXV**

The guard came with them to a white double door, "I can't enter, I'm not an officer, sorry…" and left the two there. Inara started to ask how she can get in, when a doctor poked his head, "Are you John Freeman's son?" David started, "Yeah, how did you know?"

The doctor stepped out, thick glasses, studying David, "You don't know me, but I knew your dad. He was working on a top-secret experiment and the ingredients were being hauled by tanker when it collided with an APC. Commander Darin Hickey was on that APC and was injured from the accident. I'm tending to him now. Are you Inara?" Inara was shocked, "What the fuck is going on?" She stared back and forth between the doctor David, "How do you know this guy?"

The doctor extended a hand, "I'm sorry, ma'am, my name is Dr. Ralph Hellman. I knew David's father from 15 years ago. He and I were fellow scientists until David married and moved to Poland. I never saw him again. How are your parents, David?" David blanched, this man didn't know! He slowly explained what happened and Ralph's face turned white, "Oh my god, I'm so sorry… I remember seeing a picture of you when you were 7 or so. My you've grown up. Have you met a girl yet?" David blushed and Inara giggled. He licked his lips, "Well, kind of… long story.."

The doctor shrugged this off and apologized, "Well, I must run, another patient needs my care. Take care, David. I'm so sorry to hear about your parents. Your dad was a good man, he loved his community very much as well as your mother." And he left. David blinked, "Wow, I really didn't know about that haha.." Inara punched him lightly, "Well, I hope I can see him, dammit, I've been waiting way too long…"

**CHAPTER XXXVI**

They found a special operating room and 6 doctors, specialists in burn and chemical victims, milling around. Inara asked them about Commander Hickey. Two of the doctors stayed and chatted while the other 4 left to continue treatment for the commander, "We are unique specialists. The poor commander was exposed to radiation, plutonium-289, to be exact, which was mixed with some new polymers invented by his dad." They pointed and looked at David. David blinked, "I never knew what he worked on, honest…"

Inara pouted, "David, what was your dad working on?" David comforted her in the waiting lounge, "I thought he was working on car designs and maybe advanced weaponry. I didn't know about all this… I'm sorry. You know I would never let Darin get harmed!" She started to cry, "I just don't want him to die.." and he held her as she sobbed for several moments.

Two hours later, two specialists came out and updated Inara on the commander's condition, "We think he'll pull through. He's on life-support again, but he's getting stronger. You might be able to talk to him tomorrow. Please get some rest, we'll call you when he can talk. Would you like to come back and visit him?" Inara smiled, "Yes… please… I love him so much. I dreamed about him…"

Dr. Jessica Blackheart nodded, "I know, dear, he mumbles your name in his sleep, even to this day." She smiled, "You have to be strong and be there for him." Inara nodded, "Thanks!" Dr. Blackheart smiled, "Of course, I'm a strong supporter of life, I'm a liberal, but believe technology can help anyone…" She and the other specialist left. Inara and David handed a nurse a datapad with their number on it. She quickly entered the info and thanked them, "I'll make sure you get a call when we find out, ok?" Inara wiped tears away, "I'm sorry I cried, I have to be strong!" David looked at her, "You're very strong, just human… it's ok, you feeling better now?" Inara nodded, "Yeah, I am now."

The two pals walked out into the parking lot when a weird sound went off. It came from a black car parked four rows away. Inara and David ran towards the noise, wondering if someone was carjacking a nurse's car. They found Felicia! She was happily tooting her joy at being noticed. David went up and hugged her, "Oh, I missed you, where were you??" She replied in his head, "I was ok, not to fret, just needed to teach you a lesson, about friendship and protecting yourself. Inara?" Inara turned, "Yes, Felicia?"

The car mentally winked, "Well, I'm impressed, my friend. Your training was well received by a prodigy and now he knows it even without the change! Thank You!" Inara chuckled, "Wow, you were fine all the time? I was kinda worried…" She patted the car hood, "You're really cool, and so is your guy!" she smiled, "Well, hopefully I hear from Darin tomorrow, I can't wait!" She squealed and ran off to the street.

David started to open the door when Felicia chimed up, "Listen, little one, there are some secrets you're ready to know. I know you'll appreciate me telling you how your became Stealth. Your dad had more to do with it than you realize!" David stopped, "What? I prayed for this power, not him!" Felicia laughed in his head, then stopped. "I'm sorry, but this was prepared for many years before you accepted the change. I'll explain later, ok?" David was left puzzled but was quiet for now. He wondered what she meant and was anxious to know where this incredible power came from!

**CHAPTER XXXVII**

The next day, at about 11 am local time, the phone rang. Inara eagerly grabbed it, "Hello?" She listened for a bit then her eyes got wide, "Hey, you!" …. "I'm good, I wanted to see you, but they told me you were really sick.." … "You ok?"…. she nodded, "Yeah, he told me, that David's dad knew about the accident…" David left her to be alone and confronted Felicia, who was back to a regular panther, "Listen, no offense, I love you with all my heart, but I want to know what happened? How did I get these powers? What's your story?"

Felicia rewound and started from the beginning, "Well, in the year 2034, I was born and bred to be cybernetically enhanced and to never breed on my own. I was actually enhanced to be smarter than the chimps they experimented on and they came up with my name. It was no coincidence I was named after your mom, she named me!" David sat there stunned, "So, um, I didn't name you? She did?" Felicia chuckled, "Well, my actual code name was Felicon7793, but I like what you call me now." She purred and David felt a little erect and blushed.

He petted her, "What else can you tell me at this time?" She stopped and thought, "Well, your suit and my powers were derived from dual orbs that were copies of government experiments of alien technology. They surmise it was aliens who traveled back in time from the year 3033!" David blanched, "So, we do use 30th century technology!" She nodded, "Indeed. A UFO landed in Arizona and I can show you where the remains are, the government never found all of them!" David jumped up, "Wow, my dreams tell me that I was meant to go there sometime. I never been to America before, have you?" Felicia lapped her paw, "A few times, the circus I was with bought me from a Russian lab that your dad knew about. I was carried back and forth from zoo to zoo with Ringling Brothers, for being such a docile and compliant cat. I made a small fortune of my own and it's held in a Swiss Bank account. When I turn back into Felicia, accept the change, I can access the codes. I'm almost as rich as you are!"


	9. Chapter 9

**CHAPTER XXXVIII**

Inara hung up the phone, very happy and a little confused, "Hmm, this is kinda weird.." she muttered to herself. She went outside and found David and Felicia together, the boy sitting next to the wild animal. She ran over and hugged the panther, "Wow, you're ok! What happened?" Felicia blinked and looked up at her, a strong voice in Inara's head, "Oh, I'm fine, friend. I needed some time to let this one, my true love, discover his inner strength. He's told me about you training him, without Stealth's help. Thank you very much!" She purred and licked Inara's face, her sandpaper tongue making the girl giggle, "That itches, but thanks!" She smiled and hugged the goofy cat's neck.

Inara stood up as David asked, "So, how's Commander Hickey?" Inara frowned, "Well, he's ok for now, but he wants me to call him Darin, he hates his last name." She pouted a little, but then remembered, "He wants to change his last name to MacLeod. He said he'd marry me!" and she jumped and down. David let out a huge laugh and Felicia stared at the two. She thought to herself how childish they are, and loved them both. She wondered if Inara would truly be happy if she knew the dark secrets behind Darin's military past.

Felicia sauntered over, "Child, I need to show you some things you may not like to hear…" Inara stopped, "What?" Felicia passed some images telepathically, enhanced photos of kills, murdered by Commander Darin Hickey, "I'm sorry, they made me store these." She turned away and Inara sat down, almost crying, "This can't be right, he's no murderer, he's the man of my dreams!" David hugged her and glared at the cat, "How could you? What's wrong with you?" and he tried to comfort Inara.

CHAPTER XXXIX

David called the number back and demanded to speak to Darin himself. After waiting 20 minutes, Darin came on the line, "Dude, what is your beef? Why did you murder all those people? We know about the victims of your sick games!" He paused, listening. David's expression changed, and his mouth fell open, "Ohh… I didn't know… I'm sorry… yes…yes.. of course… yes, I'll tell her… thank you.." and he hung up.

Inara was crying and David sat down next to her, "Um, Inara, what really happened was that Darin was a military sniper, that much is true!" and he again glared at Felicia. Inara sobbed but stopped long enough to reply, "But-but those awful photos! Why?" and she cupped her face and let loose with more tears, "Those-those poor people, I bet their f-f-families miss them…" David put a hand on her shoulder, "Um, look, those were terrorists and pirates and various thugs. He's no more of a criminal than the guy who murdered your parents."

Inara looked up and began bawling harder. David gleeped, "Um, I'm sorry, but Darin did what was asked of him, he did this for the military, he was only following orders. Those were bad people, Inara. Do you understand me? They already had bounties on them, but all private attempts at taking their life failed and he was the only specialist who could do the job, that's all…" Inara stopped, "Really? Well, what about the child I saw? He couldn't have been more than 10 or so…"

Felicia came over, "I'm sorry, I never explained who those people were. That child was strapped with a bomb, brainwashed by a terrorist group out of New Albania. David, did I do something wrong? I'm so sorry. I know Darin's a good man, but I wasn't told about his military experience, honest…" David looked at her, "Well, this is ok. I would have been really surprised if you'd betrayed her or me." He sighed. Inara cleared her eyes, and sighed as well, "I'm so glad you cleared that up. Did you talk to Darin himself? Did he tell you this?"

David looked at her, "Yes! He said he was sorry for what he did. He feels awful for that kid's family, but he was ordered to take out that child, before he could blow up a mall, where thousands shopped. He was only doing his duty. He feels bad enough and hoped you would understand." Inara scratched her head, "Yeah, he's a good man, I sense that in him!" and smiled, "Thanks, David… for asking him for me. I almost wanted to call him a fucking bastard and I might have. I would have lost him… I'm awful, huh?"

David looked at her, "It's not your fault, you didn't know either…" he looked at her, "Um, I found out more about where Stealth and Felicia's powers came from. When you get married, you up for a trip to Arizona? Inara stared, "Um, ok… why?" and David filled in some of the information Felicia shared with him earlier.

CHAPTER 40

When Inara and David visited Darin again, Inara asked him, "Um, I need to know more about how you and David's father knew each other." Darin blinked and swallowed, "Well… um, my memories are a little hazy, but I knew a group that John Freeman worked with as a side project. I was in a transport vehicle that collided with a supply truck that was heading to the lab where the project, code named "Italian God" was stored. I think they had some alien ships dismantled and found some strange fluids contained in odd cylinders of unknown material. Rumors flowed about alien experiments and odd sounds coming from some of the hangars where I was stationed. I heard a few odd noises myself and asked a few buddies if they knew what was going on. The US Air Force, under a 3rd generation Blue Book project was handling all of the equipment and experiments, top secret even to us."

David asked, "How did I acquire my wonderful powers? Any ideas?" Darin looked thoughtful, "I really don't know, sorry. Your dad might know, but I heard he's dead, sorry…" David blinked, "Well.. um, thanks. Hey, Darin, have you met Felicia? She is curious about you." Darin frowned, "The panther?" and sat up. A black feline face showed up at the window and the black cat climbed in and sauntered over to the group. David calmed Darin down, who seemed alarmed, "It's ok, she's my girlfriend… um, sorta…" Darin looked quizzically at him, "Ok, mate, if you're into animals, than more power to you!" and raised a fist jokingly.

David frowned at him, "Look, we bond better than you and Inara, so stop with the jokes. Besides, she can't have kids!" Darin stammered, "I'm sorry, David, I didn't know…" David patted Felicia, "You ok?" The panther looked up at him, "Nah, he's ok, he's kinda right, like I said before, I am a freak.." David rolled his eyes, "Well, we'll talk about that later, what did you mean about your own bank account?" Felicia blinked, "Well, I don't know the exact codes now, or the account balances, there are several." David was stunned, "Well, I found out about a secret account with almost $20 million in it, are you as rich as me?"

Darin laughed, "Haha, well, mate you make a sweet rich couple, I'll give you that. Kitty cat, you're pretty cool!" Felicia snarled, and David said, "Yeah, she likes you, too!" and winked. All three of them laughed heartily and Felicia nodded, "Well, to begin…" she went up and touched Darin on the hand and his face changed expression, "Hey, I hear something.." and looked at the panther, "What did you do to me?" Felicia stared at him, "I have given you the bond Stealth and I share." Darin looked at his hand, expecting a welt to be there, "Wow, how did you do that?" but Felicia ignored him, "I was a product of the 77th experiment done by Quasi-labs, hired by the Polish government in conjunction with the Belgium banking system, funded by the US Air Force. I was wild panther #93, the first and last one to live through the experimentation." David gulped, "What happened to the others?" Inara gulped as the cat continued, "I'm sorry, they perished from various side effects." Inara sighed, "aww, those poor animals…"

Felicia again continued, "They introduced a foreign agent into my bloodstream for stabilization to bond with a unique liquid metal. The stabilizing catalyst sterilized me and increased my intelligence. I knew what humans were, but didn't trust them… not until I saw David here, at the age of 10." David gulped, "um… what was your first impression of me?" Felicia thought, "Well, I sensed you were the nicest person I ever met and I liked your presence."

CHAPTER 41

Felicia stopped, "I need to accept the change and we need to get you two out of her.." she pointed her snout at Darin and Inara. Inara gasped, "Why, what did we do?" The cat nodded, "Well, someone tagged me as I left that man's mansion, the one who murdered your parents. They put a new bounty on you, my friend. I'm sorry. The local military kind of knows them and there are double agents already on their way. We must leave now!"

Inara pulled out a knife, "Fuck that shit! I have to stay with Darin. Can we take him with us?" David studied the life-support and wondered, "Felicia, can you handle his life-support?" The cat blinked, "Yes, no problem. I must touch my orb and you yours, quickly!" and they followed the panther out the window. Felicia stopped David and Inara, "I'll get your orb, wait here!" and she leaped down 4 stories, landing on a pair of cars. Sirens went off as their smashed bodies were convinced someone was vandalizing them.

Soon, a larger panther, with green hellish eyes returned, a black orb in it's large mouth. Darin stared, "Woah, what the fuck did they do to you?" Felicia nodded back to him, "I am now F.E.L.I.C.I.A., Functionally Elite Lifeform Independently Capable of Internal Analysis." She then morphed into a small flying shuttle, an internal gurney and life-support system melding right before his eyes. Darin looked at David who accepted the change, then looked at Inara, "Have you worked with these two before?" She smiled, "Sure, honey, they're cool!" and leaped out the window. Stealth helped Darin slowly onto the gurney and straps gently tied him into place, and several black needles inserted into his arm, making him yelp in pain, "Ouch, watch it!" but he soon blacked out, from sedatives and painkillers.

The new air vehicle slowly went out the window, Stealth looking back at the opening door. Several military soldiers entered, fully armed. Several shots ran out, but bounced harmlessly off of Stealth and Felicia. The two black shapes disappeared into the night, leaving a confused nurse, two doctors and four armed soldiers. They hit the alarm and began relaying this new status to their superiors.


	10. Chapter 10

**CHAPTER 42**

While on the run again, Stealth looked back at Inara and smiled, she was keeping up better! Her training was helping her with her agility and movement from building to building. He would have to give her a pat on the back later for her improving abilities. He kept up with Felicia and they stopped long enough to see if they were still being chased.

Inara caught her breath, "Is Darin ok? I need to see him!!" Felicia opened her side and Inara stepped in to check on him. He was sleeping heavily but breathing ok. She checked his stats and breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank you, Felicia, you're awesome!" and patted the inside wall of the airlift. It shuddered and purred, making Inara smile as she stepped out. Stealth looked around, "No sign of further pursuit. We're safe for now."

Inara hugged the big man, "Thank you, for making me stronger and tougher, as well as… just being you, inside…" she whispered the last part, "…david…" and he smiled and looked down at her, "You're very welcome, sidekick Inara." And she looked up and liked the sound of that. "I'm your sidekick?!?" She almost cried in joy! Inara backed off and sat for a moment, letting this all soak in. Stealth lost the change, shrinking for now.

David sat down next to her, "We'd best move soon. They'll be hunting for us, for stealing Darin and for you, as well, for that bounty on top of everything. I'm sorry I dragged you into all this!" David looked sad, but Inara nodded, "NO! Look, I asked to be hunted this time, ok? You helped me kill the person who killed my parents, but I gave that fucker a chance to surrender, thanks to Felicia, who is now keeping my lover alive, I cannot thank you enough!" and she hugged David again, and didn't let go for about 5 minutes. Inara cried and sobbed, "Th-thank you so-o much…"

CHAPTER 43

The two left soon, heading out of town quickly. Felicia morphed into a larger jet-like ship and Inara and David boarded. They quickly got all their gear and left Somalian air space, heading for Albania. Inara kind of wondered about whether Felicia would attract attention and David asked Felicia and she merely replied "I have fake signatures I constantly transmit to fool the landing towers and radar stations to think I'm a normal aircraft." Inara was impressed!

They soon reached Northern Albania and Inara stayed by Darin's side. He was in and out of sleep as he got used to be moving around. David checked the stats but Felicia reminded him she would keep track of that, they had to trust her. Inara smiled, "What other things can you become?" Felicia chimed back "I'm not sure, maybe hundreds of simple and combined machines and it's possible other animal forms, but I prefer the panther!" Inara chuckled, "You're amazing…" and lay down in a comfortable black seat and got some sleep.

They landed about 10:30 am local time and rested. David was asleep when Darin woke up again, thrashing and moaning. Inara popped up and went to him. He was delirious until she settled him down with her sexy voice, "I'm here, honey… shhhh.. it'll be ok, just rest." And Darin soon fell asleep again. Felicia spoke before Inara could ask, "His injuries are healing nicely but he has sustained some chemical damage that is down at the cellular level. I cannot determine the medium to long-term effects at this time, but please let him rest in my care, unless you'd like him to stay at another hospital." Inara thought, "Well, you are doing a good job, I think. Um, can he stay in here for a few more days, will that be ok with you?" Felicia responded, "Sure, anything, my friend. I can stay in this form for as long as she needs." Inara smiled and fell asleep again.

CHAPTER 44

Darin woke up groggy but better. David noticed him stirring and tapped Inara on the arm. She got up, rubbing her eyes, "Where are we?" and noticed Darin as well and ran over to him. He looked at her, "Where am I?" and she smiled, "You're safe, snugglebuns!" He giggled, "Awww, look at how pretty and strong you are now, you look like an older version of the little girl in my dreams!" She blushed, "Nah, I'm all dirty and sweaty. Are you feeling better?" Darin looked around, "I am a little hungry, are we on a plane?" Inara smiled and David asked Felicia to land near a restaurant. They found a new Taco Bell that just opened in northern Algeria.

David looked around outside, it was a quiet gloomy morning, fog rolling in from the south, "What does everyone want?" Inara asked her guy, and relayed his order, "Sorry, they don't have cheeseburgers here, it's a taco joint." David chuckled, "How about a chicken Quesadilla?" Darin started drooling, "I'll take two, please!" and everyone laughed, "No, really, I'm starving!!", so Inara went with David and they ordered 3 chicken Quesadillas and 2 chilitos, along with a Coke and diet root beer, and a Sprite for Darin, something light for his stomach. He was experiencing stomach cramps and gas. Felicia checked his enzyme levels, "I'm afraid his acid levels are too low, he should go with some spicy foods anyways, to induce his stomach to create more acid."

They hungrily ate while Felicia took to the skies again. Inara tapped David on the shoulder, "Does Felicia eat?" David looked at her, "Remember, she has the power of a sun, she never needs to eat regular food." And winked. Inara giggled, "Oh, yeah, sorry…" and blushed, remembering how powerful and alien David's true love was.

CHAPTER 45

They entered Northern Algeria's final border when Felicia picked up some odd transmissions, "I located some more members of the Quasi-Labs Inc. We'll locate the source and set down nearby." David leaped out and Inara wanted to stay with Darin, "I don't think I can leave him… not now… sorry…"

David approached three scientists who were leaving for the night, "Say, do any of you know a John Freeman?" and one of the scientists, an older man, piped up, "Well, the name sounds familiar, I think he was with us over 20 years ago, why?" David asked more questions, but high security clearance kept stopping them from answering any more. Felicia's voice rang in David's head, "You're not going to find any more answers this way, sorry. Let's head to the states!"

David left the parking lot and found the black plane, purring near silent. He boarded and the sleek jet shot up and into the higher stratosphere almost instantly, causing a small shockwave, "Sorry I had to do that, we must leave this hemisphere now!" David barely strapped in as the jet hit lower orbit.

The jet came back into lower airspace over the US west coast and they rushed by California in a heartbeat. Soon, the Nevada desert spun by them at breakneck speed. David asked Felicia, "How fast are we going?" Felicia giggled, "Mach 4…" David was stunned, "Can we slow down, please? I don't want to attract attention!" Felicia did as he asked, slowing down to 450 mph, "We were never in any danger, David…" David wasn't so sure.

CHAPTER 46

They slowed down to less than 200 mph when approaching Arizona airspace. Felicia transmitted codes for allowing clearance at a runway at a small airstrip in the desert, "The missing debris from the ship is 6 miles north of here." They looked at a set of foothills in that direction. "Lead the way.." David said as Darin woke up, feeling better, "I think I can walk now, I feel ok… for now…" Inara was worried, "You better stay here in the hangar out of the sun."

Felicia changed back into panther mode, "David and I will wander up there and find the rest of the ship buried soon enough. We'll be back later today." Inara nodded and Darin sat down, asking for a drink of water, as the heat got to him. David walked next to Felicia, "You think you'll stand out here, in the open like this?" Felicia glared at David, "What's wrong with you? Don't you trust me? I can't spot any civilians between us and the location, nor any military personnel. They abandoned the search 13 years ago!"

David slumped and didn't respond. Felicia kept quiet, hoping to read his mind, but he blocked it pretty nicely, thinking about flowers and his parents, their gravesite. Felicia finally spoke up, "Look, I'm sorry all this happened! If I could go back in time, I'd gladly bring your parents back, but I don't possess that power." David finally looked at her, tears in his eyes, "I know, I'm sorry, I'm not feeling very good…"

They climbed a first set of hills, determined to find the exact location, "Why are we walking, it's so damn hot out here!" Felicia responded, "There's why!" and they almost stumbled into a hidden radar dish, half-buried in the sand, the mechanism humming. David almost tripped, "Woah, didn't see that there!" and Felicia made a side trip, going around the radar's vision.

Soon, they came to the spot, according to Felicia. She began digging feverishly, loose sand shooting out at high speed. Before long, she clanked against a metal surface, "Found it!" and activated a side door, that was well hidden in the surface of the craft. They entered and David could hardly see in front of his face, while Felicia used enhanced night-vision to spot a 3rd orb, similar to the two black spheres David and Felicia possessed. David touched it, it hummed in resonance with his heartbeat, "Wow, this feels weird, but fairly peaceful…"

CHAPTER 47

They left carefully, avoiding the radar dish again, and found Inara and Darin eating a light snack, washing it down with some iced tea, "We found it!" and David held up another orb. Darin stared at it, "What is that?" and Inara touched it lightly. It sparked and tickled her finger, "Ooh, it tingles!" and she giggled, "Is this for me?" Felicia glared at her, "I'm afraid not, my friend, but we can make something useful from this that all of us can benefit from."

Inara looked puzzled and pouted, "Shoot, I wanted your guys' powers…" Darin snickered, "I don't think you do, my dear…" and when Inara glared back at him, "How the fuck do you know what I want?!?" The limping man got up and told her, "Look, from what I've heard, you have to be inoculated with a strange serum. Both Felicia and David were, David was at the age of 4, otherwise, the power drains your life-force and leaves you dead, an empty husk." Inara gulped, "Woah…"

Felicia spoke up, "Yes, this is true. Life on this planet is not prepared to accept the change without assistance, a catalyst serum, to alter the DNA and allow the change to enhance their being, rather than absorb it!"

The four wandered farther out in the desert, Felicia now in minivan form, a strange sleek black supercharged vehicle that skimmed along the road. She soon stopped and when Inara looked out, she saw nothing out there. Not a damn thing! "Where are we?" The three got out and wandered out, while Felicia morphed back into a large panther, her green eyes barely glowing in the sunset, "David, take the new orb and place it in the ground, somewhere out there." David looked confused, "Where?" Felicia reminded him, "Doesn't matter, but at least 1000 feet from the road, ok?"

David shrugged his shoulders and walked 1/8th of a mile, then carefully set the orb down on the sandy surface. The orb sparked and went quiet, until Felicia shot a small beam of green light onto its surface. The orb melted into the ground and all hell broke loose! Massive rumblings could be felt for 25 minutes or so, then a black doorway appeared near where the orb disappeared. David looked at Inara and then at Felicia, "What happened?" Felicia mentally shrugged, "I don't know. My instincts told me to have the orb placed here and wait, so I wait…"

After 30 minutes or so, as the sun set, Felicia finally entered the black doorway, before Inara could stop her, "Wait, you don't know what's….down here?" Inara was stunned! She looked at shimmering walls, blocks long! Room after room met her eyes, doors everywhere! She wandered slowly, her mouth wide open, "What the…" and heard Felicia off in the distance, "Over here…"

Inara and David found Felicia at a strange double door. The alien letters adorning the doors puzzled both Inara and David, but Felicia easily translated, "This is a special inner sanctum to the beings who accept the "change" for better or worse." David patted Felicia's thick neck, "Wow, this gets stranger and stranger…"


End file.
